Rahul Chakraverty
Myself Third Spirit of New York 2006 Scholarship Winner
A. Philip Randolph High School
City College
"Rahul is an exceptional young man. Meeting and speaking to him as I have as the College Advisor at A. Philip Randolph Campus High School is a gratifying experience in itself. Rahul is a teenager in biological terms yet in his intellectual and his scientific development, he is much more mature and developed. … [Rahul] ranks in the top 2% of his graduating class. . . . He is one of our best and one of our brightest."
—Dennis Brennan, College Advisor
Work, Volunteer, and Extra-Curricular Activities
- Math Tutor
- Member, ARISTA Honor Society
- Intern, Queens Hospital
- Volunteer, John Kerry Presidential Campaign
Excerpts from Rahul's Essay
I have been volunteering every presidential election year since 2000 to register people to vote on behalf of the 1199 SEIU union. However, the 2004 election was very different for me because I [had to] go all the way to Philadelphia from New York to register people to vote…My assignment was to cover an area located in Southern Philadelphia, which was an impoverished area that had very low voter turnout. While walking through the neighborhood I saw a part of America I never knew existed. For every house in a block there were two abandoned houses; people lived in burnt out houses, and the vacant lots were packed with garbage and attracted rodents. It was tough for me to comprehend that such a decrepit town existed in a country so rich and powerful.
Originally, this harrowing experience made me hate politics because too much time and money is spent on campaigning and mudslinging rather than attacking key issues in America such as poverty, health care, education, etc. After visiting Philadelphia, I wanted to devote my time to helping others. There are so many problems in America and not enough is being done to solve them. I want to be a part of the solution, so I have decided to pursue a career in medicine. As I was registering people to vote, it became apparent that most of these people did not have health care insurance. I hope to one day become a physician and provide my services to those in need.
