Advocacy, a love for film and a fondness for the Castilleja community are some of senior Raeva Parikh’s most defining traits. Having attended the school since sixth grade, Parikh has experienced many memorable moments at Castilleja.
“I love all the weeks that we have, the dodgeball games we do as an entire school and when it rains on the circle because everyone comes and runs in the rain — that’s always my favorite time,” Parikh said.
Her time here has influenced many of her core passions and interests: documentaries, digital media, business and technology. As she has gained more experience at Castilleja, Parikh has found meaningful ways to merge her primary interests with enjoyable activities: “I lead a documentary film club, and I’m also in robotics, but I love ASB — I kind of just do random stuff for fun.”
She initially believed she couldn’t tie together her different interests — that she had to follow one line and one profession.
“I think at the beginning of middle school, I didn’t really know what was — for lack of better — words, what was possible,” Parikh said.
However, as she grew with the school, she began to explore the idea of interdisciplinary study, and her interests have slowly evolved to fit into this context. Checking out ways to deepen her knowledge in her favorite subjects, Parikh built AI subsystems to tap into her technological side. Having consistently thought of herself as an ‘art person,’ exploring STEM helped her learn more about herself and “think about life in a STEM context.” She encourages other students to step out of their comfort zones and participate in something new, sharing that “[new things] are a cool avenue [to explore] your passions.”
Parikh has lots of advice for her younger self that ultimately boils down to living in the moment — not to stress about grades and other insignificant, high school worries. She encourages current students to savor the time they have at Castilleja and to live in the present. She frequently remarked on her love for the Castilleja sisterhood, but also discussed the challenges she faced during her time here.
“I think that I’ve overcome the challenge of holding myself to a really high standard. When you come into Casti, you feel pressure to kind of be the best at everything and overcoming that idea, that you don’t have to always be perfect and it’s okay to make mistakes, I think that’s the biggest thing I’ve taken away,” Parikh said. “Mistakes are definitely part of the process and that’s something that you kind of learn as you go through Casti.”
If she could tell incoming sixth graders one thing, she’d tell them how important it is that your grade sticks together in order to foster the sense of belonging that is essential to a positive Castilleja experience.
“You’re going to be up at 12 o’clock in the morning the night before tests with your entire grade, all studying at the same time — it’s just an incredible sense of community,” Parikh said. “Savor your people and lean on the relationships you have. That’s what makes the experience really memorable.”
After Castilleja, Parikh plans to major in Economics at Northwestern University where she will study the intersection of digital media and business, “I can see myself furthering [my education] and establishing business connections [in the] economics program.”
