Pavani Maheswarapu, a December graduate with a master’s degree in Information Systems and Technology, became a familiar face on campus due to her heavy involvement in multiple activities and events. Maheswarapu has brought her curious nature and go-getter attitude to Hussman Corporation as a member of its data analytics department. (Photo by Derik Holtmann)
Recent University of Missouri–St. Louis graduate Pavani Laxmi Priya Maheswarapu became a familiar face across campus, driven by a personality that pushed her to get involved, lead by example and leave her mark wherever opportunities emerged.
“I would see her engaged in different activities all the time,” said Damon Walker, assistant teaching professor in the Department of Information Systems and Technology for the Ed G. Smith College of Business. “She’s just one of those people who, you go to an event and it’s, ‘Oh, there she is again,’ and then you go off to the next thing and, ‘Yep, there she is again.’ Pavani would always be in something, doing something, and she always seemed really spirited, really enthused and just prepared to take on more.”
That attitude caught the attention of the people at Hussmann Corporation. When Maheswarapu graduated in December with a master’s degree in Information Systems and Technology, she had just completed her second internship with the industry leader in refrigeration systems, installation and services, and Hussmann wasted no time in keeping Maheswarapu on board full-time as a contractor for the data analytics department.
“I’m really enjoying the work,” she said. “I am able to explore multiple different tasks, utilize different tools and skill sets, which I did not think I would be able to do.”
For a person with such a do-it-all approach, UMSL proved to be the perfect match.
After earning a bachelor’s degree in commerce with an emphasis in international accounting and finance from Loyola Academy in her native India in the spring of 2023, Maheswarapu attended an education fair hoping to find an opportunity for further education that combined her knowledge of finance and business with an interest in technology. Though she had not heard of UMSL, Maheswarapu spoke to representatives of the school, who showcased the curriculum that UMSL had to offer. Maheswarapu did her own investigation into the school and its professors, and after learning about the research opportunities that would also be available to her, the choice was easy.
“Everything felt right, and I really thought that it would be a great fit,” Maheswarapu said.
Maheswarapu, who will walk the stage to accept her diploma in May, started the master’s program at UMSL in January 2024. She said it did not take long for her to realize that attending UMSL was “the best choice I could have made” because the school allowed her to dabble in so many different areas.
“Instead of me being in traditional IT, I was able to collaborate with other departments for research assistantships, and I was given the opportunity to select different courses, apart from the regular courses that we have for certifications,” she said. “So the flexibility, the opportunities that were presented, the student engagement as well, it was all so wonderful.”
But more than just the opportunities, Maheswarapu said it was the UMSL faculty, staff and fellow students who fed her curiosity and gave her the courage to follow so many different paths.
“For any opportunity, any idea, any thought that I had, everybody was available, and every opportunity was available there,” she said. “All that mattered was the amount of effort that we put in, and I do not think I would have felt this way if I had joined some other university.”
Maheswarapu certainly took advantage, becoming president of the Information Technology and Cybersecurity Club, and along the way, it became apparent that Maheswarapu had more than just her own interests in mind.
“We’ve had a lot of student-focused events over the years, and Pavani was always engaged, always eager to participate, and she would reach out, asking how she could be more involved and how she could be part of creating something better for other students,” said Dinesh Mirchandani, professor and chair of the IST department. “And that’s when I realized what a special young woman she was. Her motivation, not only to learn, but also to help create learning experiences that stood out, and she really went out of the way to make sure that everyone benefited – her fellow students, the community – and that UMSL shone through those activities.”
Walker said Maheswarapu’s uniqueness will continue to make its mark on the UMSL campus with the reemergence of the Information Systems Career Conference. Once an annual event on campus, it had not been held since before the COVID-19 pandemic, but Maheswarapu decided that UMSL’s IST students deserved the opportunity to connect with industry professionals, and Walker said that was the seed that grew into the event held in April 2025 at the Millenium Student Center.
“I really just kind of gave her an idea of what I thought it should be, and I gave her a list of people that she could reach out to, and she took off with it,” said Walker, who noted that the next Information Systems Career Conference will be held on April 24. “She would just give me updates, like, ‘This is what I’m doing, this is who I’ve talked to,’ and I didn’t really have to do much. It was just set up really well, it was really well organized. I was expecting to maybe have a little more involvement, but she had covered so much of it.”
Hussmann is now benefiting from that go-getter mindset, and in the short time that she has been with the organization, Maheswarapu has already gotten her hands dirty in multiple areas, including IT, data analytics, EDI, cybersecurity, supply chain, budgeting, finance and governance.
“I’m really grateful to them for every opportunity that they have given me,” Maheswarapu said. “They let me shadow them. They let me learn from them. They assigned me tasks. They let me prove myself.”
And Maheswarapu said she is very thankful to the entire UMSL community for providing an atmosphere that nurtured her desire for personal growth. She was particularly appreciative of the Office of Student Involvement, University Program Board and UMSL Global, and Maheswarapu also acknowledged the continued guidance and support she received from Shu Schiller, dean of the College of Business, as well as Shaji Khan, associate professor and associate dean of undergraduate programs, and Alice Lee-Yoon, assistant professor in the Global Leadership and Management Department.
“I loved being on campus because of the exposure and the opportunities that I was getting,” she said. “Everybody is willing to help the students who have interest, and all it takes is for them to step up and reach out to them. And I think you are given an opportunity to grow in every aspect that you want there.”
