What brings a community together? 

It may be a shared passion or a collective tradition that unites groups, but to Kinnera Mulam (12), the answer lies in the folds of 20 pages and a freshly brewed batch of boba. As she watches students huddle around a newly-distributed copy of the Winged Post or stroll together with reusable mason jars filled to the brim with milk tea, she knows she has fostered change in her surroundings.

Kinnera’s efforts to engage with her community began with her entry into journalism in high school, hoping to understand the work of popular news outlets and hear the stories of those around her. Despite initially envisioning herself as a writer and photographer, her experiences in junior year caused Kinnera to find a love for design, primarily via the upper school’s student-run newspaper, Winged Post.

“In my early junior year, when we worked on the first issue of Winged Post, I think something really clicked, and I realized that I wanted to be a designer and maybe even start illustrating,” Kinnera said. “With a lot of help from the people around me, I was able to hone my journalistic skills.”

As current Co-Editor-in-Chief for the paper, she finds herself as a “defensive line” for the publication. This role of responsibility, despite appearing daunting at first, soon became second nature to her, developed by her past editing positions in journalism. Upper school journalism adviser Whitney Huang appreciates Kinnera’s proactive approach to journalism, fostered by a care for all aspects of the publication process, large or small.

“I think she puts a new meaning to strength of character,” Huang said. “I think she stands very strongly by her clear set of morals. She has this sense of making sure that we are always putting our staff as well as our publication first. I think for her to put such an emphasis on that showcases that it’s really the little things that matter. ”

Journalism formed a significant community for Kinnera. From working with reporters across different grades to providing feedback on designs during production nights and hearing the stories of those whom she might not typically talk to, each step of the journalistic process provided an outlet to make a new connection. 

“The best thing is on distribution day: going around campus with a stack of 60 papers, running down the lunch line and all over campus handing out papers, and seeing people reading it, laughing and pointing at it,” Kinnera said. “It’s very fun to see all the hard work that I did being put in something physical that so many people are engaging with. I don’t think I’ll ever find another community or organization that I’ll care about as much as I do right now, because what we have in journalism is not something I’m going to find anywhere else.” 

Journalism not only served as an introduction to design and to stories of her community, but also helped Kinnera develop her interest in climate action and environmentalism. This fascination grew through her first off-campus event coverage in sophomore year, a youth climate strike. 

“Seeing all the people there that were so animated and so determined for a cause is what inspired me to continue being in Green Team and running for positions in consecutive years,” Kinnera said. “I would just say that was a very inspirational experience for me. What I got away from that experience was the power of a community, and that’s what I’ve had in my mind by being on the Green Team because we host so many events all over campus just to educate on climate justice and environmentalism.”

Through various Green Team events, including the Buy Better Boba drive to discourage single-use plastics or the clothing swap that opens up opportunities for clothing donation and thrifting, she consistently makes efforts to support the club’s initiatives, an action that close friend Sania Gupta (12) notes as Kinnera’s key strength.

“She’s really hard working, whether it be in Green Team or journalism,” Sania said. “She shares a lot about what she’s working on during lunch or when we’re talking, and I can tell that she’s really passionate about the work she does and cares about it a lot.”

While Kinnera’s efforts in extracurricular activities and clubs work to accurately inform and shape the future for broader communities, she remains a steadfast supporter in smaller groups around her, including her friends and family. Close friend Ishani Sood (12) appreciates Kinnera’s endless ability to uplift her friends, despite balancing a heavy workload. 

“No matter how busy she is, Kinnera always finds time to cheer her friends up with her energy,” Ishani said. “She’s really fun to be around and has a great sense of humor that can make us feel better even if we’re feeling down. The fact that she always makes time to care for us is a testament to the kind of person she is.”

While Kinnera’s impact on various communities echoes across campus today, ranging from locations like Green Team meetings and the journalism room to casual settings like the lunch table, her journey to becoming a leader was not without occasional roadblocks; she often lost a sense of identity in a highly competitive setting or felt disappointment about academic outcomes. Even so, the roadblocks shaped Kinnera’s high school experience into an irreplaceable one of new learning experiences and opportunities.

“It’s gonna be super cliche, but I’m a big believer in everything happens for a reason,” Kinnera said. “Even if something goes wrong or it feels like you’re just not able to do anything right, I do think that things will always work out in the end and they will be in your favor. I’ll always go back to the journalism example: I don’t think two years ago I would have ever imagined being on Winged Post, being an Editor-in-Chief or designing pages; but now I can’t really ever imagine leaving it.”