Top of their class
By Ashley Shah
Janoj Rendaraj and Anirudh Nayak are the top scholars of the Scripps Ranch High School (SRHS) class of 2024. Here they share their experiences, advice and future plans.
Janoj Rendaraj
Valedictorian
4.86 grade point average
In his time at SRHS, Rendaraj was heavily involved in the tennis team and Cyberpatriot competition through the Air Force Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (AFJROTC).
“I had been on the tennis team since my sophomore year. I was on the varsity team. The tennis team was a much needed break from my academics,” he said. “I had also been involved with the Cyberpatriot competition since my sophomore year. Being a part of this competition really helped facilitate my interest in computer science.”
Off-campus, Rendaraj was involved with a local organization called Project Binary.
“We taught underprivileged elementary and middle school students different coding languages. Project Binary also grew my interest in computer science,” he said.
Reflecting on his time in high school, he offered advice in terms of academic achievement.
“With academics, don’t be afraid to get help from friends and teachers. I had a lot of study groups in high school. Having people around helped me stay focused on getting through material without being distracted by my phone or something,” he said.
He would like to thank his parents for their support throughout his high school years, and more.
“My parents have always been a big support. They took care of a lot of things, which lessened my worries, and let me be a kid at the end of the day. I am so fortunate to have them,” Rendaraj said.
He will attend UCSD where he will be studying computer science.
Anirudh Nayak
Salutatorian
4.82 grade point average
During his time at SRHS, Nayak invested time in the Cyberpatriot competition through AFJROTC, and Math Club.
“Starting from freshman year, I had been involved with Cyberpatriot. There were great mentors in it. We were able to go to nationals one year; it was one of the best things I was a part of in high school,” he said. “I had always had an interest in math, so being a part of the Math Club really helped my interest go further. I was a part of it for all four years, and was the president.”
Outside of his commitments at SRHS, he was involved with the First Tech Challenge (FTC).
“I was involved with FTC for a couple of years. I was the programming lead and vice-captain,” Nayak said.
He shared his advice in learning how to manage extracurriculars and academics.
“During the pandemic, when I started high school, I was unfocused. I did not have a clear plan to finish my work. However, as I took on more things, I found it helpful to have a Google document to list out what I had to get done each day. Organization helped me a lot,” he said.
As his time at SRHS came to an end, he wanted to thank his parents and teachers.
“My parents made a lot of sacrifices to help me. They are the reason I was able to accomplish so much,” Nayak said. “I would also like to thank Ms. Scalero. I had her for two years. Her style of teaching was enriching, and it forced me to be more dedicated. She works hard and expects us to do the same.”
Nayak will attend UCSD to pursue computer science.