Fingers tapping a quick, upbeat melody onto the keyboard of her laptop, Saanvi Arora (12) stares intently at the screen in front of her as she works on documents with the purpose of developing statewide movements for ethnic studies. A satisfied smile settles on her face as she puts the final touches on her proposal — now, she can finally put her plan to work.

Saanvi wasn’t always into politics; her primary interest was in healthcare. When she was younger, she used to sit down with her father and watch documentaries regarding various scientific topics. Through these shared experiences with him, she learned to appreciate the information she gained from watching television, especially in the realm of biological sciences.

“At one point my dad even got me a fake stethoscope so I could diagnose him with some disease,” Saanvi said. “I was 7, and obviously it wasn’t an accurate diagnosis because it was made out of plastic, but that’s where it all started. I thought that it was cool.”

From there, Saanvi began to explore the relationship between healthcare and computer science, another subject that she was interested in, and through those two topics, she found herself working on a research project during the end of her freshman year of highschool about how technology can alleviate the effects of healthcare disparity in comparison to recently enacted public health policies.

“I started to get acquainted with public health policy and by extension, public policy in general,” Saanvi said. “I don’t even know why I found it so fun and interesting, but I genuinely wanted to learn more. And I felt that there was no better way to learn about it than to contribute to different causes that actually act upon this issue, so I started doing my own work.”

Saanvi takes part in multiple political organizations outside of Harker, such as Students Against Voter Suppression (SAVS), to name one. Through active participation in these groups, Saanvi helps organize propositions that suggest fixes for loopholes in the education system and organizes marches for these causes. Currently, she is working on ethics studies reforms regarding race theory and historical teaching models as well as expanding support systems at school that provide assistance for students.

“I’ve been working on a lot of civic engagement with high schoolers,” Saanvi said. “[Civic engagement] is really important; it’s important for people to get involved in societies that they’re living in, so I’m happy that I’ve been able to contribute to causes that make it easier for youth to get involved in political organizing.”

Friend Cady Chen (12) notes that Saanvi’s passion for advocacy has driven her to perform incredible feats.

“She is so relentless in pursuing what she’s interested in; she literally built an organization from the ground up over quarantine,” Cady said. “I’m pretty sure she spent around 20 hours a week on it. Watching her grow has been so incredible, and she really gives her all.”

Keya Mann (12), another of Saanvi’s friends, adds that Saanvi’s investment in what she believes in is her greatest asset.

“One of [Saanvi’s] strengths is that she really gets invested in whatever she does,” Keya said. “She has a couple of different interests and does a lot of work for them; she invests hours and hours at a time. I’ve noticed she has really been able to explore her areas of passion.”

Computer science instructor Susan King also comments on Saanvi’s drive and her work ethics in school, which she credits to her inquisitive mind and her unwavering desire to learn.

“Saanvi’s curiosity allows her to have great enthusiasm for a subject and embrace it fully with gusto,” King said. “She is very good at seeing the bigger picture and at the same time, deciding how to capture it in a presentation or problem. Her ethics are top notch … I’ve been so blessed to have her drop into my life for three years.”

This boundless, enthusiastic inquisitiveness that defines Saanvi in the classroom stems mainly from her interactions with her friends, whom she credits as her main sources of inspiration.

“I have a lot of [people] I’m inspired by,” Saanvi said. “All my friends are my inspiration. I really do take after what my friends are like, and I often go off of what we talk about. Learning about [them] helped make me aware of who they are and exactly who I’m talking to.”

Friend Spencer Cha (12) recalls a favorite memory with Saanvi over quarantine in which they would partake in fun activities and bond over shared experiences.

“Over quarantine, Saanvi would spontaneously organize some event every day, and it was super fun,” Spencer said. “Sometimes we would go to each other’s house and hang out for the afternoon, or have dinner together, or even do a random Zoom call for no apparent reason. It’s always a good time. Saanvi’s a fun person.”

Through and through, Saanvi’s fearless tenacity and energetic attitude provide her with the strength to truly delve into her passions for politics and healthcare alike. She encourages those who are split between multiple interests to explore both sides and to establish a connection between them.

“It’s fine if you don’t feel comfortable defining yourself by one specific thing, but it’s easy to turn a blind eye to other fields of study,” Saanvi said. “At the end of the day, everything is interconnected, so it’s fine to have multiple interests. No matter how disparate they seem, there’s always going to be some intersection you can draw, and that’s another element of fun — the creativity of trying to figure out how to interact with them, even if they’re completely different.”