Our People
ANANYA MADDURI
(Founder and President)
Born in San Francisco and grown in Hong Kong for the past 16 years, Ananya Madduri is a 17-year-old high school senior attending Phillips Academy Andover. Her inspiration behind her work and mission is her Autistic childhood best friend. After participating in the Stanford Neurodiversity Project Summer Program, Ananya founded Neurodiversity in Global Youth initially as a club at her boarding school. Over the past three years, she has helped launch various NGY branches around the world, develop curriculum for both teachers and students, conducted research on the intersection between social advocacy and Neurodiversity, and importantly, engaged the communities around her through different modes of education.
Outside of NGY (which takes up most of her time!!), Ananya is an international tennis player, and national DECA competitor, and presides over one of the five clusters at her school as co-president. In her free time, she enjoys arguing with her younger sister, practicing her Chinese with her friends, and researching the realm of Feminist Economics!
Ashley Park
Ashley Park (she/her) is currently in 11th grade at Phillips Academy Andover. She decided to apply for the Neurodiversity in Global Youth board this year to expand her interest in neurodiversity, as well as be a part of a diverse group where she can learn and teach the growing community about a topic that is yet to be shared in most educational institutions. She and the board of outreach are currently reaching out to schools all around the world to launch branches to provide neurodiversity education globally. Other than being on board for Neurodiversity in Global Youth, she is also a board member for Asian Performing Arts Club, UNICEF @ PA, and Catholic Student Fellowship. She is super excited about the many events to come through Neurodiversity in Global Youth!
Audrey Powers
(Co-Director of Fundraising)
Audrey is a junior at Phillips Academy Andover. At Phillips, she is on varsity lacrosse and track, as well as on the board of her school’s science competition team and economics club. She is fascinated with clean energy technology and is an editor of a student lead high school and college research magazine. Audrey volunteers at her local elementary school and enjoys reading about neuroscience research, so she understands the importance of raising funds and awareness for Autism and other neurodiverse conditions. She is excited to be working with such a passionate group of students to organize this year’s Walk-A-Thon!
Anna Korczak
(Co-Director of Fundraising)
Anna is a junior at Phillips Academy Andover. Initially from Chicago IL, Anna enjoys Nordic skiing, volunteering, and spending time with her family. She serves on the board of her school’s Debate Team and Catholic Student Fellowship. She is passionate about politics, foreign affairs, and expanding access to education. She is also enthusiastic about raising awareness for Autism and knows how important it is to fund research for the disorder. Anna is excited to be working on logistics and planning for this Fall’s Walk-A-Thon fundraiser.
Athene Rhee
Athena Rhee (she/her) is a rising junior at Phillips Academy who calls Seoul, South Korea home. On campus, she is part of the Chamber Orchestra, an associate editor of The Phillipian, and a board member of Unicef. She is passionate about public health and policy as means to improve the health of those with limited access or vulnerabilities. This passion has led her to join Neurodiversity in Global Youth, where she hopes to bring awareness and create a positive impact on the perception of the neurodiverse community.
Elvira Heck
Nickname: EV
Pronouns: She/her
EV is a sophomore who lives in Alexandria, Virginia, and attends Phillips Academy Andover in MA. She has been playing soccer most of her life, but recently discovered a joy for tap dancing and hip hop freshman year. She joined the organization because of her experience with neurodiverse families and classmates and wanted to raise awareness further and bring resources to neurodiverse individuals. She is currently working on communication with other schools to extend the organization globally and is excited to work on future projects with the organization.
Board Of Director
ALEXANDRA KOCH-LIU:
Alexandra Koch-Liu grew up in Berlin, Germany, and recently graduated from Phillips Academy Andover. She has always had a deep interest in neuroscience and has particularly enjoyed investigating neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. In 2020, the Stanford Neurodiversity Project first introduced her to the concept of neurodiversity. She became more interested in learning about neurodevelopmental conditions because people her age were impacted by them and they had a lot of stigma surrounding them. Together with Ananya Madduri, she saw the need for neurodiversity education and wanted to create an initiative to help provide it to high school students. Aside from learning more about neuroscience, Alexandra spends the majority of her free time training in classical ballet, working out in the gym, and reading personal development books.