Nancy Beane

Nancy Beane grew up in Kingsport, Tennessee. She has a B.A. with Honors from Agnes Scott College, an M.A.T. in History from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and an Ed.S. in Social Studies from Georgia State University. After teaching for fifteen years in elementary and secondary public schools in 3 states, she moved to The Westminster Schools in Atlanta in 1989. She taught history there for many years and became one of their college counselors in 1992, a position she held until she retired in June of 2020. While at Westminster, she was actively involved in College Board, the Southern Association for College Admission Counseling (SACAC), the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC), the Association of College Counselors in Independent Schools (ACCIS), and The Georgia Independent Colleges Association. She was SACAC President from 2004-2005, served on the NACAC Board from 2008-2011, was a member of the ACCIS Board of Trustees from 2012 to 2015, and was again a member of the NACAC Board from 2015-2018 during which she served as president in 2016-2017. Married to John Beane, a retired attorney, she and her husband have one fabulous daughter, Kathryn, and one precious dog, Wyatt.

Diane Munzer Fisher

Diane Munzer Fisher has been involved in college admissions counseling for nearly 40 years. She served as Assistant Dean of Admission at Colgate University and Admission Counselor at a campus of the State University of New York. Since 2006, she has been helping students and their families understand and navigate the college admission process. With her experienced guidance, Diane's clients have enrolled in colleges and universities across the country that have met their academic and personal requirements, provided them with opportunities for growth and set them on the path to a successful future. Diane holds an A.B. degree in psychology from Colgate University and earned her Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is the parent of a Carnegie Mellon graduate and an alumna of Wesleyan University.

Venkat Bonda

Diane Munzer Fisher has been involved in college admissions counseling for nearly 40 years. She served as Assistant Dean of Admission at Colgate University and Admission Counselor at a campus of the State University of New York. Since 2006, she has been helping students and their families understand and navigate the college admission process. With her experienced guidance, Diane's clients have enrolled in colleges and universities across the country that have met their academic and personal requirements, provided them with opportunities for growth and set them on the path to a successful future. Diane holds an A.B. degree in psychology from Colgate University and earned her Ed.M. from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She is the parent of a Carnegie Mellon graduate and an alumna of Wesleyan University.

Anand Srinivasan
Yale University

Anand Srinivasan is a rising freshman at Yale University, planning to major in the History of Science, Medicine, & Public Health. He graduated as Valedictorian from The Westminster Schools. At Westminster, he captained the boys cross country and track teams, served on the honor council, and volunteered as a student ambassador. Anand is also an avid chess player and enthusiast. He helped run the Westminster chess club and tutor chess at the Agape and LaAmistad community centers.

Aakriti Bagchi
University of Wisconsin

Aakriti Bagchi is a rising freshman at the University of Wisconsin Madison as a Posse Scholar. Recently graduated from the High School of Fashion Industries (HSFI). She hopes to pursue a degree in Fashion and Textile Design as well as Environmental Studies in order to focus on Sustainable Fashion. During her time at HSFI, she led the Social Emotional Learning Committee, Fashion Cares Team, and the Anti Prom Design Club. Outside of clubs, she learned basic web development skills and to code in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript through fellowships at Dropbox, American Express, and Google. After moving to New York City, Aakriti immersed herself in the fashion industry by interning at multiple fashion companies, some being Cynthia Rowley and Martha Suarez.

Sammy Duggasani>
Harvard University

Sammy Duggasani is a rising freshman at Harvard College who plans to concentrate in Government and South Asian Studies. He graduated Salutatorian from Alpharetta High School where he was a violist in the Symphony Orchestra, a member of Student Council, and on the leadership team for the National Spanish Honors Society. Over the summers, Sammy was involved the School of the New York Times Foreign Bureau Program, the Georgia Governor’s Honors Program in Communicative Arts, and Leadership in the Business World at Wharton. He is an Eagle Scout and was the High School Organizing Director for March for Our Lives Georgia and a Staff Writer, Social Media Contributor, and Atlanta Chapter Member of Asian Youth for Civic Engagement. He was a National Merit Scholar, Phi Beta Kappa book award recipient, and silver medalist for the National Spanish Exam.

Ameya Rekapalli
Vanderbilt University

Ameya Rekapalli is a math and science magnet student and AP Scholar with distinction. In school, she has actively participated in the Student Government Association and the Future Business Leaders of America club all four years. She has served as the student body president during her senior year and president of FBLA during her junior and senior years. She has also been involved in UNICEF, the National Honors Society, Superintendent Advisory Council, and was the co-founder of the MyFreedomDay club at North Springs. Outside of school, Ameya has participated in the local Youth Leadership Sandy Springs program and has worked with deserving charities and nonprofits, such as March for Dimes, She is Grace, and the AFRJ student council. She was also a part of The Young Entrepreneurs program, where she and her team won the Best Execution Award at the program’s global competition. Ameya will be attending Vanderbilt University as a Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholar and will be majoring in Human and Organizational Development & Economics this coming fall.

Tara Venkataraman
Elon University

Tara Venkataraman is a 2021 graduate of Milton High School. She will be attending Elon University to pursue a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre. Tara has been involved in National Honor Society and National Charity League where she volunteered in several local charities in the North Fulton community. Her volunteerism extended internationally as she served in dental clinics overseas in Kenya, Cambodia, Guatemala and Mexico. From a young age, Tara has enjoyed singing and performing, and her interest grew into a passion as she performed in more musical theatre shows. She was involved in Milton High school’s theatre for 2 years; once her enjoyment turned into a passion which turned into a commitment, she dedicated 20 hours per week training in all the disciplines of musical theatre - acting, singing, dancing at Orbit Arts Academy and Namari Dance. She is thrilled to be able to attend Elon University, her first choice on her college list (which is a top 10, extreme reach, highly regarded program in the industry with 2% acceptance rate for the musical theatre program) with a Presidential scholarship and Elon College fellows scholarship. She is honored and happy to be a part of this student panel.

Anushka Koratana
Babson College

Anushka Koratana is a rising sophomore at Babson College in Boston. She is double concentrating in finance and entrepreneurship and plan to work in consulting, specifically within the fashion and beauty industry. During high school she was also a part of The Young Entrepreneurs program, where she and her team won the First prize at Global competition.

Arvind Ganesh
University of Texas

Arvind Ganesh is a rising freshman at the University of Texas at Austin majoring in CS. He graduated from the Texas Academy of Math and Science in May 2021. Throughout high school, he participated in All-Region Orchestra, the USA Computing Olympiad, and research at the University of North Texas. He was also a National Merit Finalist. In his free time, he enjoys hanging out with friends, listening and making music, and playing basketball.

Aryan Thakur
University of Georgia

Aryan Thakur is a rising freshman at the University of Georgia, where he’s an incoming Foundation Fellow. He graduated from Denmark High School among the top 3% of his class and was the STAR student at Denmark. Also, he’s a National Merit Finalist and a National AP Scholar. At Denmark, he was a varsity Cross-Country and Track & Field athlete, founded the Elementary Science Outreach Program (ESOP), and was the president of Mu Alpha Theta and Math Team. Additionally, he conducted research at the Rollins School of Public Health, examining the link between genomic loci and trait expression, and was a member of the highly prestigious Winship Summer Scholars Research Program. Finally, he interned at a local congressional campaigns, helping to organize and power the nation’s largest grassroots political campaign. He plans to study Genetics at the University of Georgia and pursue a career in medicine.

Pratyush Mallick
Harvard University

Pratyush Mallick (he/him) is a rising freshmen at Harvard College with an intended concentration in English and Economics. He graduated in the top 1% of his high school class and is passionate about mobilizing technology for political organizing. During the 2020 Democratic National Convention, he represented Texas At-Large as the youngest delegate for Senator Bernie Sanders. Outside of class Pratyush enjoys art history, painting, and impatiently waiting for the next Game of Thrones book.

Rachel Liu
Stanford University

Rachel Liu is a rising freshman at Stanford University and graduated Cum Laude from the Westminster Schools. She was a Writing Fellow, a section editor on the Bi-Line Newspaper, and head editor of Embryo Magazine. Over the summer, she’s volunteered at Odyssey, worked as a Westminster Summer Camp counselor, and attended Stanford Pre-collegiate journalism courses. Through her service with Agape and Health Outreach, Rachel has earned 3 Gold Presidential Service Awards and led Westminster’s Service Corps team. Her art portfolios have won several Scholastic Art Keys as well as the Congressional Gold Award. She is also a National Merit Finalist, AIME competitor, and book award recipient.

Soumia Vellanki
Vanderbilt University

Soumia Vellanki is a rising freshman at Vanderbilt University, planning to double major in Medicine, Health, & Society and Human & Organizational Development. She graduated as Salutatorian from The Westminster Schools. She served as a Class Officer in Student Government, Co-Head Editor of Evolutions Creative Writing Magazine, and President of HOSA & Pre-Med Club. She also founded the Agape Health Outreach Initiative, teaching underserved elementary schoolers about health and wellbeing. As the co-captain of Varsity Volleyball, she won a State Championship and the Marcia Wright Memorial Award for servant leadership. She has received a US Presidential Scholars nomination, National Scholastic Writing Medal, multiple Gold Presidential Volunteer Service Awards, and has published poetry in a literary journal.

Sumanth Kadiyala
University of Pennsylvania

Sumanth Kadiyala is a rising freshman at the University of Pennsylvania pursuing a degree in computer science. He was the salutatorian of Northview High School and a National Merit Scholar Finalist. He competed in math tournaments throughout high school qualifying for the American Invitational Mathematics Exam and earned a spot as a MathCon National Finalist this past year. Through his work at the National Youth Leadership Training program, a Boy Scouts training program, he became a two time recipient of the Gold Presidential Service Award. He was the president of Mu Alpha Theta (Math Honors Society) and the Programming club. This past summer, alongside several friends, he founded Quick Start Tutoring, a tutoring program that helped prepare students for the upcoming online semesters. He hopes to study the intersection between technology and finance.

Siva Appana
Georgia Institute of Technology

Siva Appana is a rising freshman at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He graduated from South Forsyth High School in the top 3% of the graduating class. Siva successfully completed and earned the IB Diploma while playing for the high school tennis team and serving roles as the Co-President in Technology Student Association (TSA) and Science Olympiad. His inventiveness and passion for machines have led him to earn myriads of awards at both state and national-level competitions in each of his extracurriculars. Passionate about his heritage and service, Siva was an active volunteer at Chinmaya Mission Alpharetta (CMA) and a leader in the Vibha Youth Group. At Georgia Tech, he plans on pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering with a concentration in Automation/Robotic Systems.

Kruthi Kanduri
UT Dallas

Kruthi Kanduri is a rising sophomore at the University of Texas at Dallas with an Academic Excellence Scholarship where she was admitted as an international applicant. She is a Cognitive Science major with a concentration in Artificial Intelligence and also on the pre-medicinal track. In high school, Kruthi was president of her debate team, vice-president of French National Honor Society, and involved in her school's book club. She is a 3-time UIL State Qualifier and District Champion in CX Debate and also the two-time winner of the FISD Battle Of the Books. Currently, Kruthi acts as her university's Student Government Academic Affairs Chair and is also involved in Kappa Alpha Theta, an international Greek-letter fraternity.

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