Singh family pledges $3.5M for scholarships and endowed chair in the Maine College of Engineering and Computing 

University of Maine Foundation President/CEO Jeff Mills today announced a $3.5 million pledge from alumni Rajendra “Raj” Singh (‘77G, ‘24H) and Neera Singh (‘24H) for scholarships for Maine students and the Singh Chair in Applied Innovation. The announcement was made Tuesday at the UMaine Foundation’s annual luncheon recognizing members of its Charles F. Allen Society, which honors individuals and families who have pledged to bequeath donations to the Foundation through their estates.

Of the pledge, $2.2 million will endow the Rajendra Singh and Neera Singh Family Scholarship to support UMaine students enrolled in the Maine College of Engineering and Computing. Recipients will be known as Singh Scholars, with preference for graduates from Maine high schools who have academic merit and financial need. The remaining $1.3 million will fund the Rajendra Singh and Neera Singh Family Chair in Applied Innovation. The fund will enable the holder of the Singh Chair to advance the curriculum in traditional or emerging areas across disciplines, while preparing students to translate innovation to commercialization.

“The University of Maine granted us scholarships to pursue graduate school, which helped us to come to the United States,” said Neera Singh. “UMaine people introduced us to this great country of ours. Maine has a very special place in our hearts.”

“Raj and Neera Singh are visionary leaders, creative innovators and generous benefactors,” said Joan Ferrini-Mundy, president of the University of Maine and its regional campus, the University of Maine at Machias. “Their pioneering work in the telecommunications industry helped revolutionize wireless cellular technology worldwide. The Singhs’ gift reflects their deep commitment to expanding access to high-quality, transformative education and research at their alma mater.”

The Singhs created the Singh Chair in honor of John “Vet” Vetelino, emeritus professor of electrical and computer engineering. Vetelino was instrumental in recruiting a significant cohort of graduate students from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur to UMaine. In addition to advising more than 60 master’s and doctoral candidates, Vetelino received more than 100 science and education research contracts totaling more than $25 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Defense, government and industrial laboratories. He also received 25 NSF science education grants for involving highly qualified undergraduates in state-of-the-art research. Vetelino received the Distinguished Maine Professor Award in 2008 and was inducted as an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Fellow in 2010. 

“Raj and Neera have an extraordinary ability to conceptualize and commercialize new technologies,” said Vetelino. “At the time we recruited them and their peers in the 1970s as graduate students, UMaine was launching our nascent research programs, which led to UMaine’s current status as an R1 research-intensive institution today.” 

Raj Singh received his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1975 from IIT Kanpur, a master’s degree in electrical engineering in 1977 from UMaine, and his Ph.D. in wireless communications in 1979 from Southern Methodist University. Neera Singh received her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from IIT Kanpur. She received a scholarship to begin her master’s program at UMaine and finished her master’s degree at Kansas State University, where Raj Singh began his career as an associate professor. 

Together, the Singhs went on to develop computer software to quickly and efficiently calculate radio tower interference for new cellular telephone systems. They formed Lunayach Communications Consultants LLC, which spun out of their university research. The Singhs later co-founded Tecom Ventures, a private investment firm based in Miami. As international leaders in the development of wireless communication technology, the Singhs were awarded honorary doctorates of humane letters from UMaine in May 2024. Neera Singh was inducted into the Wireless History Foundation’s Hall of Fame in 2022. 

“I grew up in a small village in [the State of] Rajasthan [in] India,” said Raj Singh. “We had no running water, electricity, television, radio or newspapers. [But] we did have an elementary school that my father started. 

“Maine was the first stop for me in our great country,” he said. “UMaine professors John Vetelino and Steve Mittleman guided me to work with my strengths to conceptualize new ideas and connect the dots. With my education, I went on the journey of life to start many businesses together with my wife, Neera. This would not have been possible without the foundation [that] the University of Maine provided us. We will forever be grateful to Maine.” 

“The Singhs treat UMaine students and faculty like family and have remained close with their UMaine mentors and classmates,” said Giovanna Guidoboni, dean of the Maine College of Engineering and Computing, the mission of which is to produce the graduates and new technologies needed to move Maine’s economy forward. “They value broad access to education for rural students like themselves and applied research and development as a path to uplift society.”

“Raj and Neera are insightful philanthropists and have been working with foundation Senior Director Pat Cummings to develop a plan to meet their philanthropic goals to support excellence in the Maine College of Engineering and Computing,” Mills said. “We are happy to have the Singhs here as honored guests to publicly thank them for their thoughtful generosity.”

Contact: Monique Hashey, monique@maine.edu