Lambert Senior Vedant Mehta has dedicated himself to serving his community and using his computing, mathematics and neurology skills for social good over his past four years at Lambert. Mehta has honed his capabilities through methods such as videos, textbooks and online courses and has worked tirelessly for projects such as diagnosing neurological disorders, lowering costs for biomedical devices and making sensory pads for kids with autism. Though Mehta has always wanted to serve others, he became specifically interested in helping the autistic community after a moment with a family member.
“ I visited my cousin who was diagnosed with autism, and every time I talked to her I wondered what I could do to help people with neurological disorders,” Mehta explained. “That sort of became the theme for my work over the next two or three years and I sort of expanded and broadened that theme to encompass helping people in general through computing.”
Through his learning, Mehta thought of so many problems to solve and people to help, and his work has truly made an outstanding impact at Lambert and beyond. But his projects weren’t easy to execute, and as so many Lambert students chase the word “impact”, he advises people to listen before they create.
“It’s always good to get to know the group of people you’re helping to get to know what’s being done in that area already,” Mehta emphasized. “Having that initial understanding really helps you realize and put together a better plan for what you want to accomplish because you know where work needs to be done.”
Being at Lambert can feel intimidating with so many people aiming for positions, projects and working towards the same goal. However, Mehta believes that the people can be a huge motivator for students to reach their goals, and that the competitive community helped push him forward.
“One of the biggest things for me was working with other people who had similar goals and ideas on some of these projects and learning what worked for them,” Mehta said. “Staying in touch with these people and understanding where they saw things going, I think that is probably the biggest help.”
Mehta has hoped to give back to his community in the same way, being a person of guidance and support for his fellow students. As he prepares to graduate from Lambert, he hopes to leave behind a lasting legacy on Lambert and the community.
“I want to be remembered as a person who used what skills he had to look out for others,” Mehta noted. “I want to be remembered as somebody who, even though they were really competitive and far ahead, always was a relatable person and someone who you could go to.”
