Congressional Award to WHS Student

Anushka Khubchandani, a rising senior at Weston High School, won the Congressional Award Gold Medal, the highest level of an honor bestowed to young people who set and achieve goals for voluntary public service, personal development, physical fitness, and expedition-exploration activities.

In addition, Ms. Khubchandani was recently named an ambassador for the program, one of only 20 in the country, a role she has taken on enthusiastically with the active support of WHS principal Meghan Conetta.

The Congressional Award is a nonprofit private-public partnership established by Congress in 1979 to recognize initiative, service, and achievement in young people. Every president since Jimmy Carter has signed the program’s continuing legislation.

Congressman Jim Himes said Ms. Khubchandani’s “dedication to the program, both in completing its rigorous requirements and serving as an ambassador, speaks volumes about her work ethic and the bright future she has ahead.”

Ms. Khubchandani said her efforts involved over 800 hours of work, half of it devoted to public service, the rest divided among personal development, physical fitness, and organizing every aspect of a five-day family expedition, a task designed to demonstrate leadership and initiative.

Her public service work included volunteering at the senior activities centers in both Weston and Westport, where she learned about challenges seniors face in navigating the healthcare system, independent living, and the threat of online scams and digital fraud. She said she specifically discussed ways to protect seniors from fraud with Congressman Himes when they met in Washington.

Ms. Khubchandani founded the high school’s Women in STEM club and developed and led an eight-week STEM program for students at Weston Intermediate School. She also organized speaker events with women in science and engineering and is a WiSTEM Ambassador, working to expand STEM access beyond the school community. She is also a student representative on the Weston Commission for Children and Youth.

The Congressional Award program was, for Ms. Khubchandani, an opportunity to “figure out what I’m interested in.” She said “everything about it makes you step out of your comfort zone,” and that she can envision a career in biology and data science.