Our Team
Caroline Zhang
Founder
Literary Arts Director/Tutor
Caroline is a high school senior who specializes in creative writing, specifically short-story and prose. She hopes to empower others to embrace diverse perspectives that encourage change and open-mindedness. Caroline is a two time National Gold Medalist in the Scholastic and Writing Awards for her work in Short Story and Flash Fiction, and has accumulated 4 Gold Keys, 10 Silver Keys, and 2 Honorable Mentions in the Scholastic Regional Awards. She has also been recognized internationally by the New York Times, the Peauxdunque Review, the Center for Fiction, and the Bluefire Editorial, among others, and has had her work featured in multiple online publications.
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Anuraa Venkat
Founder
Public Speaking Director/Tutor
Anuraa is a high school junior who has an unwavering passion for educating youth in the art of advocacy. Entering her 3rd year of competitive debate and speech, she has seen first hand the power of critical thinking and advocacy in everyday life. As an eighth grader, she won the National Speech and Debate Association Middle School National Championship in International Extemporaneous Speaking and earned the title of state champion in Novice Public Forum Debate. As a ninth grader, she has qualified to the National Speech and Debate tournament in International Extemporaneous Speaking and has received a national ranking of the nation's top 60 at The National Individual Events Tournament of Champions in Extemporaneous Speaking (NIETOC).
Indira Bagal
Publicity Manager/Tutor
Indira is a high school junior who loves art and digital photography. She loves to express her way through different perspectives through her work, as well as inspiring others to personalize their work. She is especially passionate about expressing personal and social issues through artwork. Indira is a freelance artist, having commissioned artwork to multiple clients. She is has also illustrated a published novel, The Elemental Lies. In her free time, she enjoys playing tennis.
Annie Tan
Outreach Director
Tutor
Annie, a high school junior with a steadfast dedication to her community and an intense commitment to equal education opportunities, has taught free online classes since the summer of 2020. She has taught a variety of subjects, from Chinese culture to geography, world events, math, and storytelling, reflecting her passion for accessible education. In her 4 years of speech, she won first place in Informative Speaking category in seventh grade and tied for first in eighth. In 2023, she became the champion of the VBI Philadelphia NSDA division in Lincoln-Douglas debate, securing first place in the Novice Lincoln-Douglas division for speaker points at the Minneapple tournament in Minnesota for debate. She has also led middle school debate classes and camps and has judged and provided feedback at local middle school speech tournaments.
Nikhita Natraj
Tutor
Nikhita is a high school junior who enjoys playing tennis on her high school team and reading books in her free time. She is passionate about healthcare advocacy and is part of a medical nonprofit’s Youth Advisory Board to help give back to her community. Nikhita hopes she can help people get more comfortable with and even enjoy public speaking. She’s helped coach many middle schoolers and even some high schoolers with speech and debate, experience she is excited to bring to Lightwave Learning.
Yashas Singh
Tutor/Outreach Director
Yashas is a junior fascinated by history and economics. In his free time he likes to binge watch shows on Netflix and make maps. In speech he was a section finalist in Extemporaneous Speaking and in PF Debate. He has placed at many local tournaments and made it to outrounds at the JV Novice State tournament. He also has experience coaching a local middle school debate team. Yashas hopes to bring a lot to the table for Lightwave.