Vijay Pendakur

Dr. Vijay Pendakur serves as the inaugural Vice President and Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer at Zynga, Inc, where he offers diversity strategy and coordination for their global operations, spanning 3 continents. In addition to leading the diversity function, Vijay also leads university relations, corporate social responsibility, and learning & development at Zynga. Prior to this appointment, he led campus-wide crisis management and diversity efforts at Cornell University as the Robert W. and Elizabeth Staley Dean of Students and Presidential Advisor on Diversity and Equity. Before Cornell, Vijay served in leadership roles at universities across the country, with a consistent focus on student success and equity design strategy. As a scholar-practitioner, he has an extensive publishing record, including editing a book, and his research areas span leadership pedagogy, student success strategy, and higher education administration. Dr. Pendakur serves on the institute teaching faculty of the USC Race and Equity Center and as a faculty member for the “High Impact Practices Institute” through the American Association of Colleges and Universities. He holds a bachelor's degree in history and East Asian studies from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, a master's degree in U.S. history from the University of California, San Diego, and a doctorate in education from DePaul University.