The muffled sound of a roaring crowd seeps through the curtains separating the robotics competition field and the pits where Atharv Goel (’25) spins a red t-handle in a bolt. He pushes his safety glasses up his nose while turning his head upside down to study the underside of his team’s intake. Suddenly, Atharv begins to discuss a solution to the intake’s malfunction with his teammates. Right as queuing begins, he lifts the robot up onto the cart and begins rolling it towards the screaming crowd in preparation for the next match. 

Atharv started robotics in elementary school when he was introduced to a LEGO robotics team by his computer science teacher in class. Since then, robotics has been a constant in his life. Atharv especially enjoys the physical aspect of robotics — working with his hands to build each of the subsystems. 

“Computer science is cool because you can basically make whatever you want using just a laptop, but everything you make is constricted to that laptop,” Atharv said. “Robotics felt like I could manifest that into the real world. You can make whatever you want, and then it’s actually something you can touch and do things with.”

Now, Atharv serves as the technical president of Harker Robotics, a team that competes in For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) Robotics Competition. In his role, he prioritizes collaboration in the robotics team with the hope that the team can operate as a cohesive unit. To Atharv, robotics isn’t just about winning, it’s also about learning to communicate, problem solve and stand up from failure. Over the past few seasons, he gained invaluable leadership experience that he carries in his everyday life. 

 “Leadership taught me management in multiple senses,” Atharv said. First, I learned to manage my own feelings because when you’re trying to get something to work, you have to make sure you don’t get angry because that will not help. Always have an unbiased, unclouded point of view. Another is time management. Actually set goals for yourself or for your team and make sure that you complete those goals, and if you don’t complete those goals, reflect on that to make sure in the future you’re able to.”

Atharv’s goal-setting mindset allowed him to maintain an open mind and become an empathetic leader. He faces every leadership challenge with a desire to understand another’s perspective. Robotics mentor Martin Baynes particularly commends Atharv’s commitment to always learning more and inspiring others to do the same.

“Atharv was always very faithful, kind and thorough in what he did,” Baynes said. “He’s definitely got inner strength and direction. On top of that, he’s learned how to motivate other people and how to give them direction without dictating what they should do and giving them freedom for expression. The quality of his work was not only what I asked him for, but also what he brought in from curiosity.”

Atharv also utilizes his leadership skills to deepen the bonds of his friendships. Close friend Kyle Li (’25) notes Atharv’s meticulous planning of each of their individual senior Hoscars performance rehearsals. Kyle admires his dedication and decisiveness, which helped them successfully combine the strengths of seven people and complete the performance. 

“I admire that he’s pretty outgoing and is very close to the people he talks with, and, in general, has this care inside of him,” Kyle said. “He’s not afraid to speak his mind. He’s a lot more forward than me in a way and more direct about what he wants, in a positive way. Sometimes, when I have something that I’m not too comfortable saying outright, he just says it for me. He’s my other voice.”

While robotics acts as a technical outlet for Atharv, he thrives in the realm of music. He transitioned from classical guitar to baritone saxophone in eighth grade on a whim. Atharv began to fully pursue music in high school in jazz band. He revels in the creativity and freedom of playing music and the challenge of grasping difficult rhythms and keys. 

“I keep thinking: I got to keep improving. I got to keep playing,” Atharv said. “In robotics, everything has to be super well organized and managed to make sure things actually work. But with music, because of the creativity and freedom, I can just start playing whatever I want, whenever I want as long as I have my instrument. It’s really fun and freeing.”

Atharv values willpower in the sense that he strongly believes in accomplishing what he sets his mind to. Close friend Deeya Verma (’25), who met Atharv in frosh year, recalls that his cleverness and determination left a deep impression on her when they first met.

“He’s a very smart person. but he’s also very outgoing,” Deeya said. “No matter what we’re talking about — if we’re talking about robotics or a YouTube video that we’re watching — we will have the same energy. He always sounds very passionate about whatever he’s talking about. I really admire that he’s a good speaker.”

Atharv brings an air of wonder into everything that he seeks to accomplish. Whether he’s tackling a new piece of music or building a new season’s robot, he will approach every situation with courage and curiosity to face the unknown.

“Sometimes when you’re in the midst of things, it’s hard to see whether things are changing for the better or not and whether things are working out,” Atharv said. “But, another part of being a leader is knowing where to put your own time and effort and energy into. You have to understand that sometimes things just won’t work out the way you want them to, but you just have to keep moving forward. Things will not fail because of one mistake or bump in the road. You need to put trust into your teammates and yourself.”