Shashi K. Shah, a long-time New Canaan resident and former professor at the US Merchant Marine Academy, passed away at Stamford Hospital on June 21, 2025 after a long illness. He was 90 years old.
Professor Shah was born in Calcutta, India, and came to the United States in 1954 with the intention of studying to become a chemical engineer. He made his way westward and eventually landed in Provo, Utah. While there, Professor Shah enrolled at Brigham Young University, receiving his Bachelor’s Degree in 1957 and his Master’s Degree in 1959. Although he left Utah after he finished his studies, Professor Shah was forever grateful to the BYU community for welcoming him with open arms and providing him with the means to launch a successful career in business and academia. Arriving in New York City at the beginning of the 1960s, Professor Shah worked at a number of companies, including CBS, McGraw-Hill and Lever Brothers. During this time, he met the love of his life, Sumitra Shah, a graduate student of economics at Columbia University. Shashi and Sumitra were married on February 7, 1963, and moved to Rego Park, Queens, where they started a family. The Shahs’ son, Sanjit, was born in 1965. In the 1970s, Professor Shah became CEO and a director of Information Centers of America, Inc., popularly known as “Tra-Vel.” He received his MBA from NYU in 1979, and his Ph.D. in business from the City University of New York in 1986. These degrees provided Professor Shah with the foundation to transition from the business world to academia. He taught at Rutgers University, St. John’s University, Hofstra University and Seton Hall University before he found his true home at the US Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York. During his time at the USMMA, Professor Shah was instrumental in helping the Academy modernize its teaching facilities. He also started an IT security program for the midshipmen and worked with the NSA and the US Military Academy to raise funds to develop two IT security labs. Professor Shah retired from the Academy as a full professor in December 2010. Upon retirement, Professor Shah and his wife moved full-time to New Canaan.
