India-born healthcare professional to advise on issues affecting Virginia’s richly diverse Asian American communities
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has appointed Indian American healthcare professional Srilekha Palle to the Virginia Asian Advisory Board (VAAB) that serves as a liaison with the diverse and rapidly growing Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities.
In her new role, community leader and Republican politician will advise and inform the governor on issues affecting the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities and advocate for their interests.
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She will also advise the governor on ways to improve economic and cultural links between the state and Asian nations, with a focus on the areas of commerce and trade, art and education and general government.
Announcing Palle’s name with several other administration and board appointments on March 10, Youngkin stated, “I am confident that with their help we will be able to strengthen the spirit of Virginia and accomplish great things for our Commonwealth,”
Currently, she serves as an advisory board member for the Physical Therapy Assistant Program at Northern Virginia Community Collegee. She also volunteers with the Vincent Ferrari foundation to provide rehabilitation care in rural community hospitals across India.
“I look forward to serving as a liaison between the administration and our Commonwealth’s richly diverse Asian American and Pacific Islander communities,†Palle said.
Palle, a doctor with over 23 years of experience in leadership roles in the healthcare sector, was the Fairfax Republican nominee for Sully District Supervisor in 2019.
“Srilekha Palle is the personification of the American Dream,†said Fairfax Republican Party Chairman Steve Knotts,â€I was thrilled to learn of her appointment to the Asian Advisory Board and I have every confidence that she will serve the Commonwealth admirably.â€
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Palle is also a visiting fellow at the Independent Women’s Forum, where she contributes by writing policy papers on current issues healthcare faces, from cost to affordability and price transparency. She earned her Doctor of Physical Therapy from Boston University and an MBA, focusing on healthcare administration.
Palle was born and grew up in rural Bethamcherla in the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh. Following her marriage to entrepreneur and software engineer Srinath Palle, she moved to the US and settled in Virginia, Their daughter is in middle school and their son is a freshman majoring in computer science at the University of Maryland.