Emily Muse is a clinical psychologist who works with children and families. She has worked with many elementary school children in the Bay Area who struggle socially, emotionally, and academically. Learning to read, and learning to enjoy reading, often opens doors for children to engage in learning and life, building a sense of competence, confidence, and empathy. Emily reads on a daily basis to help her stay grounded and unwind. She is particularly drawn to historical fiction. Emily joins the Read to Thrive team to promote children’s love of reading both locally and globally.
Murali Ramasubramanian has been actively involved in Read to Thrive since its founding in 2014. He has a passion for reading himself and looks forward to making things better by constantly learning, and re-learning, things in all walks of life. He operates with a strong belief that knowledge is the power to a fulfilling and satisfying life, and the best way to gain knowledge is to make learning fun. In addition to managing the finances and acting as a board member while setting direction for Read to Thrive, Murali works for a battery company focused towards creating a high energy and long- lasting rechargeable battery for consumer and vehicle markets. The strong interest in learning, enjoying things and experiences makes him very interested and actively involved in most leisurely activities. Suffice it to say, anything that is fun, he is interested in.
Nageswararao Mandava – Board Member
Nageswararao is an industrialist by profession. He is an adviser and member of an all India organization representing his region for upliftment of society, particularly children’s education, character building, personality development, and poverty eradication. He loves working with children. He is a member of many service organizations: Lions Club International, Seva Bharati etc. He believes that service to humanity is service to God. He leads a book club in his native place, Ongole, India.
Tara Mandava – Founder, Director
Tara founded Read to Thrive in 2014 with a mission of creating a passion for reading in children. She is very passionate about reading and strongly believes that reading is a gateway to a better life for every child. Read to Thrive was born out of her desire to share her love of reading with children around the world. She started her first book club in 2012 for her nine year old son and a few other neighborhood kids and never looked back. In her current role, Tara is responsible for three book clubs and loves working with children. She also helps the volunteers with logistics. In addition to reading, Tara also enjoys traveling, learning Spanish, hanging out with friends, running, baking, and cooking. She lives in Fremont, CA with her husband and two children.
Our Board
Emily Muse – Board Member
Emily Muse is a clinical psychologist who works with children and families. She has worked with many elementary school children in the Bay Area who struggle socially, emotionally, and academically. Learning to read, and learning to enjoy reading, often opens doors for children to engage in learning and life, building a sense of competence, confidence, and empathy. Emily reads on a daily basis to help her stay grounded and unwind. She is particularly drawn to historical fiction. Emily joins the Read to Thrive team to promote children’s love of reading both locally and globally.
Murali Ramasubramanian has been actively involved in Read to Thrive since its founding in 2014. He has a passion for reading himself and looks forward to making things better by constantly learning, and re-learning, things in all walks of life. He operates with a strong belief that knowledge is the power to a fulfilling and satisfying life, and the best way to gain knowledge is to make learning fun. In addition to managing the finances and acting as a board member while setting direction for Read to Thrive, Murali works for a battery company focused towards creating a high energy and long- lasting rechargeable battery for consumer and vehicle markets. The strong interest in learning, enjoying things and experiences makes him very interested and actively involved in most leisurely activities. Suffice it to say, anything that is fun, he is interested in.
Nageswararao is an industrialist by profession. He is an adviser and member of an all India organization representing his region for upliftment of society, particularly children’s education, character building, personality development, and poverty eradication. He loves working with children. He is a member of many service organizations: Lions Club International, Seva Bharati etc. He believes that service to humanity is service to God. He leads a book club in his native place, Ongole, India.
Tara founded Read to Thrive in 2014 with a mission of creating a passion for reading in children. She is very passionate about reading and strongly believes that reading is a gateway to a better life for every child. Read to Thrive was born out of her desire to share her love of reading with children around the world. She started her first book club in 2012 for her nine year old son and a few other neighborhood kids and never looked back. In her current role, Tara is responsible for three book clubs and loves working with children. She also helps the volunteers with logistics. In addition to reading, Tara also enjoys traveling, learning Spanish, hanging out with friends, running, baking, and cooking. She lives in Fremont, CA with her husband and two children.