The Andrew Carnegie Foundation, formerly Carnegie Corporation of New York, announced June 30, 226, the 2026 Class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans, recognizing 25 distinguished naturalized citizens whose contributions have strengthened America. Five of the 25 are Indian Americans. They include:
- Sunil Amrith (Kenya) Professor of History, Yale University
Sunil Amrith. PHOTO: -Stephanie Anestis,Yale University - Nikesh Arora (India) Chairman and CEO, Palo Alto Networks
Nikesh Arora, courtesy Andrew Carnegie Foundation - Mahzarin R. Banaji (India) Professor of Psychology, Harvard University
Mahzarin R. Banaji. PHOTO: Courtesy Andrew Carnegie Foundation - Sanjiv Chopra (India) Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Sanjiv Chopra. PHOTO: Courtesy Andrew Carnegie Foundation - Reshma Kewalramani (India) President and CEO, Vertex Pharmaceuticals
Reshma Kewalramani. PHOTO: Courtesy Andrew Carnegie Foundation
The tribute, launched by the foundation more than 20 years ago, is celebrated every Fourth of July. According to the American Immigration Council, there are 48 million immigrants in America, about half of whom are naturalized American citizens, the Foundation noted.
Immigrants make up 14 percent of the U.S. population and account for 23.6 percent of entrepreneurs, 28.4 percent of health aides, and 23.6 percent of STEM workers.
The Foundation highlighted other achievements of naturalized immigrants, viz. -Fifty-nine percent of startups valued at $1 billion or more were founded or cofounded by immigrants, and 66 percent of billion-dollar companies in the U.S. were founded or cofounded by immigrants or the children of immigrants, according to a June 2026 report by the National Foundation for American Policy.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Great Immigrants, Great Americans tribute was launched by the foundation in 2006 to raise public awareness of the economic and societal benefits of legal pathways to citizenship. It honors the legacy of Andrew Carnegie, who immigrated to America from Scotland in his teens, rose to become one of the world’s wealthiest men, and established one of the first philanthropic foundations in America. Over the last two decades, the foundation has recognized more than 790 Great Immigrants, resulting in one of the largest online resources of its kind.
As is traditionally done, the 2026 honorees will be recognized with a full-page public service announcement in The New York Times on the Fourth of July and tributes on social media.