Beachwood Patch Whiz Kid of the Week Ananya Marathe

Age: 18

School:

Accomplishment: Ananya is president of the high school’s Executive Student Council and is putting together a school assembly on cultural awareness, an idea she came up with, scheduled for June 3.

Key to Awesomeness: The words hurt at first.

Ananya Marathe had just learned she was nominated for Homecoming Queen, one of three candidates to receive the honor. After the announcement came over the intercom at one morning, she heard something she hadn’t expected.

“I remember someone telling me when they announced my name as a top-three candidate, some boy was like, ‘Oh that Indian girl made it? Wow,’” said Marathe. “And I was shocked when they said that. When I heard that comment I thought, ‘That’s sad that people still identify me as that Indian girl.’ You would think Beachwood of all places wouldn’t do that.”

She went on to win Homecoming Queen, and it didn’t take long before Marathe turned her shock and sadness into something positive. Using her position as president of the school’s Executive Student Council, the student governing body that reigns over the entire school as opposed to individual grade levels, she approached Principal Robert Hardis with an idea: put together a cultural awareness assembly for all the students before the end of the year.

“I’ve always been wanting to do this,” she said. “People joke around they’re like, ‘Oh she’s going on her cultural crusade again,’ but I thought we should have an assembly on cultural awareness.”

The assembly will start off with a bongo dance and feature two teacher speakers, singing and activities representing Filipino, Iranian, Israeli, Japanese and Indian cultures. Marathe said she often tries to promote the diversity she sees on a daily basis and her assembly, she hopes, will convince others to take a similar interest.

“It’s a diverse community but I think it could be more diverse,” she said. “Beachwood’s accepting but I think we don’t go outside of what’s given to us. Even if they’re not prompted to be more interested at least their eyes are open to it.”

Her affinity for learning about other cultures has also translated into her becoming president of the Model United Nations Club at the school. She wants to major in International Studies at American University in Washington, D.C., which she’ll begin attending in the fall.

“I think the fact of the matter is at this time in history it’s impossible to ignore what’s going on in other parts of the world,” she said about why she chose her major. She said her experience on student council also influenced her desire to work in government. She was elected secretary of the Executive Student Council as a freshman for her sophomore year and served in that position again as a junior.

“I think student council showed me how I can look past differences and come together and build consensus,” she said. “I think these are all skills that are important. I’m not very math or science-based, but at the same time I think it’s so important to have diplomats – people who understand cultural ties in other nations.”

She hopes to one day work at the State Department and later enter the field of international law. She’s a member of the National Honor Society and has a 3.95 GPA.