mentorship
College and Education
Srishti Gadodia
Srishti is a rising sophomore at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and is majoring in Computer Science with a concentration in Artificial Intelligence and Data. She is a two-time qualifier for the Dean’s Honors List and tutors other students in Calculus I and Calculus II with the Advising and Learning Assistance Center (ALAC). Srishti is also very passionate about women empowerment and is the treasurer of She’s The First, a club that fundraises in order to send underprivileged girls to school in third world countries. Apart from homework and event planning, Srishti loves to dance and has studied North Indian Classical Dance, Kathak, for 11 years. She loves to travel and bake chocolate chip cookies in her free time. In the future, Srishti hopes to work in database systems and inspire other girls to pursue a career in technology.
Vaishnavi Sesetty
Hey, my name is Vaishnavi Sesetty and I’m a junior at the University of Maryland, College Park. I'm majoring in Computer Science with a specialization in cyber security and in finance. I’ve always been super interested in STEM, especially computer science and I’m glad that I’m able to study what I love and work in the field I love. I’m currently interning for Amazon for my second summer and it’s super interesting work! After my undergraduate education, I plan on pursuing my MBA to combine my two academic interests, computer science and business. My dream is to use these skills to hopefully start my own tech-oriented company one day as technology is the future.
Neha Malepati
Neha Malepati is an ambitious young woman and an incoming freshman at Cornell University. She is a recent graduate of New Jersey’s Governor’s STEM Scholars, a yearlong program in which 95 Scholars are selected statewide to perform government sponsored STEM research, in which she completed a project on crowdchain - a blockchain based crowdsourced software development. This summer she will be an intern at Solomon For Congress, a grassroots progressive congressional campaign, and an apprentice at the Google Computer Science Summer Institute. As a campus strategist for MoneyGirls and a campus representative for Redefy, Neha strongly believes in advocating youth activism. Her eventual goal is to create a sustainable company centered around emerging technologies, as such Neha is heavily involved in STEM research and industry. In her free time, you can find her performing stand up comedy or baking up a storm of macarons.
Sreya Katabathuni
Hey! I’m Sreya Katabathuni, a student from Northeastern University pursuing a BS in Computer Science and Business with a minor in Interaction Design. I’m interested in web and software development and interactive user interfaces. When I’m not behind my computer, you’ll likely find me going to some kind of concert around town or trying the food at a new Asian restaurant.
Abaan Kermani
Hi! I’m Abaan, a rising sophomore at the University of Maryland in College Park- Go Terps! I study Marketing and Supply Chain Management in The Robert H. Smith School of Business, and am a member of the Business, Society, and Economy College Park Scholars program. When I’m not studying or getting bubble tea with my friends, I stay busy through working with the Smith Undergraduate Student Association, and the Residence Hall Association. I am also an active member of several service-oriented organizations on campus. This summer I am completing a social media internship with a prominent South-Asian Food blogger, as well as a fellowship through my business school, providing consulting services to local D.C businesses. I’m big on social media, marketing analysis, and the ever-changing travel industry, and can’t wait to see what the future brings!
Sriya Gopu
Reach out:
Instagram: @itsjustsriya
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Sriya Gopu is a 2020 graduate excited to be helping future graduates! She has taken part in many activities at High School South and would like to spread awareness about some of the programs that aren’t as popular as they should be. When she gets some downtime, her go-to activities are painting, reading, and cooking. Sriya will be explaining how she discovered her many passions at South. She is thrilled to be a Health Sciences major at Drexel University on her way to medical school starting this Fall!
Sahiti Tholeti
Reach out:
Email: sahititholeti@gmail.com​
Sahiti is a rising second year student at Northeastern University where she is pursuing a BA in Political Science and International Affairs with a minor in Psychology and Marketing. She has a passion for learning and leadership and hopes to work on education policy at local and national levels in the future. When she's not reminding people to vote, you can find Sahiti listening to Taylor Swift and talking about anything/everything Disney.
Nehal
Nehal is a student at NYU majoring in biology and minoring in Child and Adolescent Mental Studies and Chemistry in the pre-medicine track. In her free time Nehal volunteers at the Princeton First Aid and Rescue Squad as an EMT. Nehal also enjoys reading and baking.
High School
Cathy Xiang
Reach out:
Instagram: @cathy.xiang28
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Cathy is a rising senior at West Windsor Plainsboro High School South. She is currently the Senior Culture Editor for the school newspaper, The Pirate’s Eye, and is the Co-officer of the Journalism Club. Cathy enjoys playing tennis and is on the school’s varsity tennis team. She hopes to spread more knowledge on the value of journalism and is excited to discuss the school’s journalism program.
Arishta Dey
Arishtha is a rising freshman at West Windsor Plainsboro High School South. She looks forward to participating in a variety of high school clubs, including Model UN, Yearbook Club, and Red Cross. She’s also very passionate about dance and has been learning two forms of Indian dance, Bharatanatyam and Bollywood, along with a variety of others for the past 10 years. In her free time, Arishtha loves to paint, read, and hang out with her friends.
Varshini Vimal
Varshini Vimal is a rising senior at West Windsor Plainsboro High School South and an ardent learner of both Bharatanatyam and Indian Carnatic music. She has been learning both art forms for over 11 years and has completed her Bharatanatyam Arangetram as well. Varshini is an outgoing and cheerful person who has developed an interest in the medical field, and is looking to pursue her dreams of becoming an oncologist. She currently teaches dance at the Nrithyanjali Dance Institute and is a teacher at Tamil School, along with volunteering at a senior citizen home every week. She has organized multiple fundraisers to donate to the needy in India, and hopes to use her empathetic nature to help others. At home, Varshini enjoys spending time with her family and watching Netflix.
Jaanvi Kumar
Jaanvi Kumar is a rising freshman at West Windsor Plainsboro High School South. She enjoys dancing, art, listening to music, and having fun with her friends. She has completed 4 years of classical Indian dance, Bharatnatyam. She is excited to go to high school and join many clubs, such as the Red Cross Club, Yearbook Club, and SAASA. Some of her favorite subjects are math, science, and art.
STEAM Professionals
Ranjini Nair
Ranjini Nair is a software engineer with over 20 years of experience working in finance, insurance and the pharmaceutical industry. She has an undergraduate degree in Computer Engineering and a Masters in Information Sciences. She is currently working for Novo Nordisk Inc. in Plainsboro, NJ.
Priyanka Shekhar Khati
Priyanka Shekhar Khati, information technology executive and founder of InnC LLC, shows participants an app she developed called “mytravelog.” Special thank you to Mrs. Khati for explaining the intricacies of mobile app development! She is an electric engineer by education and Information Technology Executive by profession. Recently, she has started a company that offers some niche software products. She develop iOS app as a hobby. The iOS app's name is mytravelog. She is also the mother of two kids.
Swapna Chappidi
Mentors and participants with Swapna Chappidi a healthcare business analyst. Special thank you to Mrs. Chappidi for giving an inspiring talk about the countless implications of computer science.
Latoya Edwards
GIFTS mentors with Latoya Edwards, VP of Outreach for WW-P AAPSG (West Windsor-Plainsboro African American Parent Support Group). Special thank you to Latoya Edwards for the support and for making this session possible!
Sheetal Nair
Participants and mentors with Sheetal Nair, who works in Business Intelligence at Novo Nordisk. Special thank you to Mrs. Nair for sharing the importance of computer science in all walks of life!
Shruta Vishwanath
Participants and mentors with Shruta Vishwanath, group manager and financial services professional at U.S. Bank in NYC. Special thank you to Mrs. Vishwanath for an inspiring discussion on data analytics and the importance of applying knowledge from school in the workforce!
Suchita Kanala
Sailatha Reddy
Sailatha Reddy
Dr. Steven Per
Leslie Koppel
FIRST Robotics
FLL Team Extraordinary Engineers
Completing the mentoring cycle FLL team Extraordinary Engineers mentor and share their robotics experience with our JrFLL participants.