Oswego East Student-Athlete of the Week-Dhairya Trivedi

Senior cross-country runner Dhairya Trivedi has always been a self-motivated individual. A perfect example of such is Dhairya visited the UIC medical campus this past summer and reached out to various laboratories to inquire about opportunities for summer research. Dhairya’s persistence and maturity are also why he has become a leader and top competitor for the boys’ cross-country team and earned the distinction of the Oswego East student-athlete of the week.

As a freshman, Dhairya and his cross country teammates were fortunate they were one of the few sports allowed to field a competitive team in the fall due to the pandemic. “Dhairya and his class came into high school when everyone was trying to navigate school and sports under COVID mandates, and this group was asked to be more flexible than any other group we’ve had,” says Jim Milner, head coach.

It was during this season, and to what Dhairya credits as quality upper-class leadership, that he realized if he put in the work it could be a sport he excelled at. “I started improving when I ran with my older teammates, and I realized if I worked a little harder I could compete with my varsity teammates,” says Dhairya.

That self-starting attitude has made Dhairya a high achiever both on the course and in the classroom, something immediately recognizable by his head coach when Dhairya was a freshman. “Dhairya has always been a strong leader and a great person who has developed into a strong runner because he dedicated himself to the sport,” says Jim.

That dedication earned Dhairya a spot on last year’s varsity team that qualified for the state meet, where they finished 15th overall. Dhairya is also a member of the track program, running the 800 meters and the mile, and has been a multiple-time state qualifier. His goals this season include breaking the 15-minute barrier in the 3 mile, earning all-state distinction, and helping lead his team to another berth at the state meet as a group.

Dhairya’s future may include running in college for a club, but his goal of majoring in neuroscience on a pre-med track is where his priorities and time commitment lie. With a 4.7 G.P.A. and a 34 on the ACT, Dhairya will have several choices about where he will attend college in the fall. Beyond his academic success, what makes Dhairya stand out from his peers is his pursuit of opportunities in his community and beyond in his field of interest.

Dhairya volunteers his time at Rush-Copley in the rehabilitation center and went door to door at UIC’s medical campus laboratories last summer inquiring about research opportunities. He spent three days a week for 5 hours each day conducting RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis on human samples with the hopes of finding certain biomarkers in DNA that would help diagnose rheumatoid arthritis.

Dhairya’s mom, Himani Trivedi, told Dhairya about Dr. Rubin’s Mini-Medical School as a sophomore; a program that introduces middle school and high school students to medicine. Dhairya participated in the program as a sophomore, became a teacher’s assistant as a junior, and this year is a lead teacher’s assistant and helps run the program and teach new assistants how the program works.

Himani and her husband Himanshu know what medicine means for their son’s future, saying, “Dhairya always strives to give back to his community, so these experiences let him connect with members to share empowering ideas. We know he wishes to continue being an inspiration to others surrounding him by encouraging them to also take full advantage of opportunities that are in hand. As a future member of the medical community, he strives to share this empowering mindset.”

Heather French, Dhairya’s AP Biology teacher from junior year, believes Dhairya has all the qualities to succeed in the medical field, saying, “Dhairya is incredibly motivated to succeed in the classroom and his sports, and is truly one of the best at time management I have ever seen.” She goes on to say, “Despite the rigor of his classes and extracurriculars, he is always able to accomplish his tasks to a high level. Dhairya is incredibly thoughtful and careful with his actions and words, which, in addition to his intelligence, is why I believe he will be so successful in the profession.”

The future is bright for Dhairya, both in academics and athletics, and for someone who has accomplished so much already, he advises future Wolves by saying, “Never fall back scared of a challenge. Have faith in your capabilities and your capacity to be great.” Dhairya has proven his capacity to be great, but as someone who continuously sets goals and looks for constant ways to improve, the sky is the limit for this talented senior.