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Shantaram Joshi to receive UNMC community service award
He was honored for decades of community service, promoting cultural inclusion and founding Omaha’s Hindu temple.
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Bhavana P - Tue, 15, Apr 2025
- 14:37 EDT
- 69
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Shantaram Joshi / University of Nebraska, Medical Center College of Medicine
The University of Nebraska, Medical Center College of Medicine, (UNMC) has announced Shantaram Joshi as the recipient of its Spirit of Community Service Award.
Joshi, professor in the Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Anatomy will be honored at the UNMC Faculty Senate annual meeting on April 16. The award recognizes faculty who use their time, knowledge and resources to benefit the community beyond their UNMC responsibilities.
Also read: Asian Women of Winnipeg honors Dhaliwal with Distinguished Service award
Joshi, who joined UNMC in 1983 was recognized for decades of community involvement that began shortly after he arrived in Nebraska from India.
“When I first came here, the then-very small Indian community locally noted the need for a place of worship, learning and cultural preservation,” Joshi said. Drawing from his upbringing in a family of priests in Gokarna, Karnataka, India, he began leading religious ceremonies in a local community center. His efforts contributed to the establishment of a Hindu temple in Omaha, which now serves as a spiritual and cultural hub.
Joshi said he values the reciprocal spirit of inclusion in Omaha and has focused on building bridges through interfaith events and cultural outreach. “It was a core mission for us to reciprocate a feeling of inclusivity by hosting events open to the broader community and to participating in supportive, interfaith dialogues,” he said.
In his four-decade teaching career, Joshi has inspired countless students, often by reflecting on his own academic journey from economic hardship to earning a PhD. “I wanted to be that source of encouragement for another generation of students, and it has been an honor to watch so many students succeed over the years,” he said.
As a teacher, he continues to adapt to new technologies and educational trends to ensure students receive a strong academic foundation. “The bigger moments have been watching students fiercely defend their dissertations, graduate from a degree I have supported them through for years and most of all, when students reconnect with me after several years to say I had a part in shaping their career,” he said.
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