Westchester Young Professionals: Board of Directors

Paul Anthony Presendieu: Chair
is an accomplished young professional in Westchester County, New York. He is committed to uplifting individuals of all socioeconomic backgrounds as the son of Colombian and Haitian immigrants. He currently supports the Federated Conservationists of Westchester County as their Student Network Coordinator, and Vice President Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project as a Chapter Chair and a member of the National Youth Working Group.
Paul has received numerous accolades throughout his tenure of volunteerism. In 2015 he was named a recipient of the Westchester County Government’s Earth Day Award for reestablishing an observance of Earth Day at SUNY Westchester Community College. In 2018 he was named a Top 22 under 30 young professional Wunderkind by Westchester Magazine, a recipient of the Westchester County Board of Health’s J.R. Tesone Youth Public Health Service Award and was named a New York State top 40 under 40 Latino Rising Star by the Hispanic Coalition of New York Inc.
Paul currently attends SUNY Westchester Community College where he is taking classes under the environmental science curriculum as a Student Alumnus to transfer to SUNY Purchase to pursue a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies. Paul’s long-term goal is to pursue becoming an Environmental Attorney at PACE University’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law in White Plains, New York.

​Raina Kadavil: Co-Chair
​Raina Kadavil is a dedicated lover of service work, writing and travel. She is a Marketing Analyst at Mastercard and an MBA student at Johns Hopkins University with a background in International Relations. She is also the Philanthropy Chair of the Women’s Leadership Network at Mastercard and the Chief Executive Officer of Urban Refuge, a nonprofit that breaks geographic and linguistic barriers by mapping aid for refugees and immigrants living in large cities. She serves as Communications Vice-Chair and Young Professionals Vice-Chair for the United Nations Association of Westchester and Secretary-General of WestMUN, after twelve years of Model UN experience. She is the author of a novel called “The Voice of Thunder” and is compiling her second book, an anthology called “Ignite Your Story.”
Raina has a long history of philanthropy work, leading her first community organization, Global Ambassadors, at the age of ten and engaging young people with the Sustainable Development Goals. She worked at the United Nations for several years, founded the Boston University chapter of UNA-USA and led BU’s first professional foreign affairs journal as Editor-in-Chief. She also has an extensive research background, having conducted an award-winning independent study on the impact of climate change on horseshoe crab migration and aided in the research fueling Urban Refuge, studying refugee aid use in Istanbul, Turkey. She has spoken about her work and experiences across the United States, in Beijing, and at the United Nations General Assembly Hall. Raina has been recognized for her work by the Coca- Cola Foundation, Zonta International, the Walt Disney Company, Claes Nobel, and more. She loves exploring the world: shas traveled to 33 countries over the last five years and worked all over the world from London to Beijing to Sydney. In her free time, you can find her lost in a good book or on a new hiking trail.

Harshal Shet: Vice-Chair
Harshal Shet serves as the Vice Chair for the UNA-USA Westchester Young Professionals. In spring 2020, Harshal graduated summa cum laude from the University at Albany, State University of New York, receiving his B.S. in Public Health and B.S. in Biology. He is continuing his education and is currently pursuing a Master’s in Public Health degree from the University at Albany. He currently works at Albany Medical Center and the New York State Department of Health where he puts his passion in helping people in the health care field in practice. Harshal enjoys giving back to his community, volunteering for White Plains Hospital, tutoring students, charity: water, Feeding Westchester, among many other organizations and was awarded the President’s Volunteer Service Award- gold medal. Harshal’s goals are to address minority health disparities, including equitable care and access to resources, in additional to environmental issues, healthy food and clean water distribution inequalities, and human rights for all. ​


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Harshita Shet: Treasurer
Harshita is an 11th grade honors student in Woodlands Middle/High School. Harshita wants to make a difference in the world. Her project “Feminine Dignity” was initiated through India Center of Westchester (ICW) and has been recognized by the UNA-USA Westchester Chapter. Harshita was honored by the Town of Greenburgh with the ‘Rising Star’ award. She is a student member of the Greenburgh Human Rights Advisory Committee for the Town of Greenburgh. She serves as Finance Chair of UNA-Westchester’s Young Professionals Program, and she leads the Teen Girls Forum in ICW.
She is involved in many charitable community services around Westchester County, such as Feeding Westchester, Volunteer of NY, Hearts and Homes for Refugees, Heart Association, Diabetes Association, ACS, and Locks of Love. Harshita received the Presidential Voluntary Service Award Gold Medal for her community service. Harshita has won numerous Regional and National Awards for Indian Classical Dance, Arts, and Karate and competed at the Scripps National Spelling Bee held in Washington, DC for four consecutive years. She was nominated for a NY Emmy for the documentary “What Ever Happened to Black Wall Street.” Harshita plays basketball, volleyball, and track. She plays the piano, flute and performs in the school band.