Northview High School Graduate Nethra Pai is Named 2025 U.S. Presidential Scholar

The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was established in 1964 by executive order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. Of the 3.9 million graduating seniors in 2025, only 161 students received this prestigious designation. An invitation to be a U.S. Presidential Scholar is one of the highest honors for graduates.

Nethra Vani Pai of Northview High School in Johns Creek is 1 of 3 extraordinary honorees representing Georgia. Her score of 36 (scale 1-36) on the ACT and 5s (scale 1-5) on Advanced Placement (AP) exams in 7 subjects qualified her for an immersive look into her high school career by the presidential scholar committee. What they found was truly remarkable.

Nethra’s high school achievements were just the cover of an impressive portfolio. She is multilingual, speaking two Indian languages (Telugu and Konkani) in addition to English. As a life-long violinist, singer, and artist, she enjoys performing for Hospice and hospital patients. According to Nethra, creative outlets help her balance academic workloads, keeping anxiety at bay.

At Northview, she participated in many clubs and started an art club with fellow students. As Editor-in-Chief of The Messenger and speech captain for the school’s speech and debate team, Nethra was thrilled to exercise her communication skills claiming, “I love to talk.”

Tutoring special needs students through Care for Hope, creating activities for elementary students through Girls in STEM and raising money for free cataract surgeries through the Sankara Eye Foundation painted a clear picture of Nethra’s contributions for the scholar committee.

In a recommendation letter supporting Nethra, Northview AP Chemistry teacher Azmathunnissa Azeem described her student as hard-working, dedicated, conscientious and independently driven.

Azeem shared, “Nethra was an asset to my class. When peer tutoring, executing chemistry labs or modeling the balance of academics and extracurriculars, she was an inspiration.”

Nethra’s interest in medicine was the catalyst for summers spent shadowing physicians. The experience she gained afforded her the opportunity to write and present research in Texas, Portugal, and Greece as a member of the Global Thrombosis Forum (GTF).

Whether healthcare, education, advocacy for rights, or artistic expression, Nethra tailors her academic skills to align with the needs of people.

Nethra shared, “My parents, both doctors, encouraged me to try everything and discover my interests. My younger brother, Rishi, now a student of Ms. Azeem at Northview, has always stood by my side.”

Now a freshman at Northwestern University on the research campus in Evanston, Illinois, Nethra plans to double-major in Global Health Studies and Biology. Her goal is to become a physician and focus on the disparities in healthcare and sociopolitical determinants of healthcare problems.