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About us - Beyond 8

Learners at Beyond 8 co-design flexible pathways that lead to purposeful education and successful entry into top colleges in India and abroad.

Our Story

Beyond 8 grew out of decades of innovation at HLC International, India’s first Ashoka Changemaker School. From pioneering inclusive classrooms to launching public problem-solving projects, our founders Naveen and Raaji have been re-imagining education for over 25 years.

Beyond 8 is the next step in that journey — a place where ambitious teens design their own pathways with mentors, internships, and accredited academics, graduating confident, skilled, and college-ready.

Our Founders

Meet our Founders

Beyond8 Team Member

Naveen Mahesh

CoFounder

Naveen has spent over two decades reimagining education at scale. As Director and Managing Trustee of HLC, India’s first Ashoka Changemaker School, and Founder of Beyond 8, India’s pioneering learner-designed alternative to high school, he has led innovations that blend mentoring, internships, and accredited pathways for ambitious teens. Recognised for building models that inspire policy and practice, Naveen’s work has reached millions — from inclusive classrooms at HLC to NalandaWay’s programs for 10 million government school children. He has completed advanced programs at Harvard Business School and IIM, and is a social scholar at The Leadership Consortium under Prof. Frances Frei, bringing global expertise with deep local commitment. He has launched multiple social initiatives, serves on NGO boards, and currently leads as Vice President of the Tamil Nadu Association of Cambridge Schools. Honoured as an “Uncommon Leader” by the Madras Management Association, Naveen is recognised as a heutagogy expert and is driven by one purpose: helping every learner design a future with confidence and joy.
Beyond8 Team Member

Raaji Naveen

CoFounder

Raaji is a trustee and thought enabler at HLC, India’s first Ashoka Changemaker School, and co-founder of Beyond 8, the country’s pioneering learner-designed alternative to high school. Since 2005, she has led with evidence-based research, shaping HLC’s philosophical identity and enabling innovations that have redefined how learning is made visible. Earlier in her career, Raaji worked in business analysis and product management with multinational firms in the US. She is Harvard educated and recognised as a heutagogy expert, bringing systemic and impact focused approaches to redesigning education. Raaji is also an Ambassador for the Leadership in Education program at Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her initiatives, from Karthavyam in public problem solving to Elina in inclusion, have served as living laboratories of social innovation. Named an “Uncommon Leader” by the Madras Management Association, Raaji is committed to building communities of purpose where learners and educators co-create joyful, rigorous, and future-ready pathways.

VISION

To set the benchmark for hyper-personalised high school Program in India — where every teen co-designs a joyful, rigorous path with a mentor, learns through real work, and progresses college-ready and life-confident.

Our vision is for every learner to design a joyful and rigorous pathway that leads to confidence in life and readiness for college.

MISSION

Learners should learn with freedom and fun, explore multiple interests, and in ways that prepare them for fulfilling lives, not just careers. Our hope is that through this wide exposure learners get a glimpse into the many directions in which their lives can go and have the opportunity to be excited by the diversity of choices they have.

Our mission is to give every learner the freedom and fun to explore widely and prepare for a fulfilling life.

The Tribe Behind Beyond 8 The mentors, makers, and enablers who shape learner-designed futures.

See our tribe →
Beyond 8

Learner-Designed Futures — Hyper-personalised pathways to global colleges and fulfilling lives.

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