April NC Kids Care Honorees Are True Visionaries

Every month the North Colonie CSD Board of Education recognizes a student – or in this instance, a group of eight Shaker High School juniors – who go “above and beyond” to make a difference. The BOE members and those in attendance gave these students a standing ovation for their combined effort to raise over $65,000 in seven weeks to support blood cancer research.

The nomination presented to the Board of Education read as follows:

Every NC Kids Care recognition holds special meaning as it highlights the accomplishments of an outstanding student, or on several occasions two students who have gone above and beyond in their commitment to a project or event. Well, there can be no maximum headcount when you have Teams Banking on a Cure, Triumph for Tyanna, and Answer to Cancer, who combined raised a total of $65,000 in seven-weeks for cancer research.

Tonight we honor these 8 Shaker High School juniors from Nathaniel Covert’s science research class who comprised these three teams after being selected to join the 2023 Student Visionaries of the Year program through the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

With us tonight are, from:

Team Banking on a Cure: Gia Patel, Sarah Nune, Sana Bargeer 

Team Triumph for Tyanna: Ishan Khambete, Satvik Malneedi

Team Answer to Cancer: Thomas Morgan, Aneel Uppal, Hridanshu Gusain

NC Kids Care April graphic The Student Visionaries Of The Year, according to the LLS “look to the future—and see infinite possibility. They challenge the status quo—and make the impossible possible. They boldly imagine a better world – and lead the charge to create it.”

It is a philanthropic leadership development program in which highly motivated high-school leaders embark on a journey of professional growth, fostering professional skills such as entrepreneurship, marketing, and project management – all while raising as much funding and awareness as possible to impact LLS’s lifesaving mission.

“They are truly incredible and inspiring and I am so thankful to Nate for having put me in touch with them,” said Katy Muller, Campaign Development Manager, Student Visionaries of the Year of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Connecticut, Albany, and Eastern NY

“It was an incredible opportunity for them to grow in leaps and bounds in terms of leadership, management, and even confidence.”

This year’s campaign raised over $258,000 in the capital region (a new market record!), all raised by 12 capital-region student-led teams.

The competition is a “blind” fundraising competition, meaning that teams do not know how much their competitors have raised during the competition. Only at the grand finale do teams find out how much everyone has raised. Between Team Banking on a Cure, Team Triumph for Tyanna, and Team Answer to Cancer, a total of $65,166 was raised!! As an added accolade for Shaker HS, Team Banking On A Cure was the runner up in the competition, raising $36,774 in 7 weeks.

Each and every one of these students was incredibly dedicated to the cause, and spent countless hours figuring out ways to raise funds and raise awareness for LLS and the fight against blood cancer.