Our Story

Named for a teacher who believed education is the greatest gift.

Aashirbad Foundation was founded by Roshan Dhamala, who grew up in Jyamrung, Dhading—studying by candlelight, walking steep hills to school, and seeing a computer for the first time only after moving to Kathmandu. The foundation is named for his late father, a high-school teacher who gave everything so his children could learn.

Our Programs Our Team

The Founder

From Dhading to Texas and back.

Roshan earned a BS in Computer Science and an MS in Software Engineering from Texas Tech University. He now works as a Senior Data Engineer at Veeva Systems. But the barriers he faced growing up—no electricity, no internet, families choosing between food and tuition—stayed with him.

In 2023, he started Aashirbad Foundation to pilot a simple idea in Dhading: if you cover a student’s fees, pair them with a mentor, and give their classroom a laptop, they stay in school. We are proving that model now and designing it to scale.

How it works

Community-led, donor-verified.

We don’t decide who gets support from a desk in Texas. Headteachers and ward committees in Dhading nominate students at risk of dropping out. Our team verifies, and donors receive receipts and updates each term.

Headteachers and local leaders nominate students at risk of dropping out.
Our Nepal team meets with each student and their family.
Donors receive receipts and a term-end update showing where funds went.

Our Team

Four volunteers, two countries.

Roshan Dhamala

Founder · Senior Data Engineer at Veeva Systems. Born in Jyamrung, Dhading. BS in Computer Science, MS in Software Engineering from Texas Tech University. Founded Aashirbad in 2023 to give rural students the opportunities he didn’t have.

Bimala Shrestha

Board Chair · Oversees governance and strategic direction. Advocate for women’s education and access.

Rajan Dhamala

Treasurer · Reviews all disbursements and maintains financial records. Ensures every dollar is accounted for.

Goma Devi Dhamala

Program Lead (Nepal) · Coordinates with headteachers in Dhading, verifies student enrollment, and distributes scholarship funds and devices to partner schools.