AcademicQuests recently hosted Lumi Webinar where Mr. Harish Menon, an alumnus of Carnegie Mellon University and the Vice President International of Lumi.Network, shared program details, introduced Anushka Bhatnagar to share her student experiences, and answered attendees’ questions.
Mr. Harish Menon is an award-winning mission-driven leader in global education management and consulting, who champions access, equity, and excellence in programs that make a transformative difference in people’s lives.
He has led program management, finance, office of the CEO and president initiatives, and international market development at College Board USA headquarters. As a founding team member of the College Board India Global Alliance, he has managed stakeholders, including CXOs, higher education and K-12 leaders, the former Secretary of Education of the USA, White House staff, the special assistant to the President of the USA for education, and ministries of education. Prior to his work at College Board, Harish was a management consultant at Mitchell Madison Group, USA, focusing on manufacturing industries.
Beyond education, Harish is deeply interested in the intersection of money, culture, and technology. He is an active investor in digital assets and occasionally flexes his coding muscles to write smart contracts. As a global citizen, he has lived in Kenya, India, the USA, and has now adopted the UAE as his home.
The webinar started with an introduction to the Lumi Network, an AI-assisted entrepreneurship and innovation program for students aged 10-25. Lumi helps students build skills such as problem-solving, creative thinking, and resilience through a design thinking curriculum accredited by Stanford University. Students work in teams to identify real-world problems and develop tech-enabled solutions, guided by near-peer “innovation facilitators.” The program features 15 live sessions with innovation facilitators spread over 1 to 15 weeks, culminating in a capstone presentation to industry judges. During the sessions, students investigate problems, ideate solutions, and build prototypes using AI tools.
The program focuses on developing entrepreneurship skills (storytelling, prototyping), AI skills (productivity, creativity), and values (resilience, critical thinking). Students earn a digital “skills passport” showcasing their proficiency levels and have the opportunity to return as paid innovation facilitators after university. Anushka shared how Lumi helped her university applications and interviews, highlighting project outcomes, skills gained, and alignment with her academic goals. She has since returned as an innovation facilitator to guide other students.
The Lumi program fee is $800, but there is a 40% discount ($480) for Eye on Ivy students using the code EYEONIVY40. Need-based full scholarships are available for 20% of students in each cohort. Interested students can register at www.lumi.network, selecting preferred dates in July-August. For additional questions, attendees were encouraged to email hello@lumi.network or harish@lumi.network. The webinar emphasized the importance of considering the time commitment and cost before enrolling.
Overall, the lumi.network webinar was an insightful session that highlighted the transformative potential of the Lumi Network program, illustrating how it equips students with critical skills and opportunities for future success.