Washington: For the first time, an Indian-American woman has been elected as the new Mayor of the key Californian city of Cupertino, globally known for its Apple headquarters.
Savita Vaidhyanathan, an MBA who worked as a high school Math teacher and an officer in a commercial bank as well as in non-profit management, was sworn in last week in a ceremony attended by her mother who had flown in from India.
“This is definitely a very momentous moment in my life,” Vaidhyanathan told a packed house at community hall in Cupertino, ‘The Mercury News’ reported.
Two days after taking charge, she issued her first proclamation as the Cupertino Mayor in education.
Savita is the first Indian-American Mayor of Cupertino, which according to Forbes is one of the most educated small towns in the country with local public schools ranking highly.
According to her campaign website, Savita has been a Cupertino resident for over 19 years and has been deeply involved in several community activities in the city.
“I’ve had several congratulatory messages saying that I’m the first woman mayor of Indian-origin,” said Savita.
“Yes, I do take a lot of pride and prestige in that, but I do want to thank the residents of the city of Cupertino that voted me in not looking at ethnicity at all. Thank you for your trust in me, and maybe we did break that silicon ceiling and put a few more cracks in that glass ceiling,” she said.