Dear Harker Community, I am delighted to share with you that Neil Mehta ’02 and his wife, Jasheen, are establishing The Mehta Endowment in Support of Scholarships and Entrepreneurship. The Mehtas will make an initial gift of $5 million to establish their endowment, and in addition to their initial gift, they have committed another $5 million in the form of a matching challenge gift. They will match every dollar that the Harker community contributes to Harker’s capital fund as a part of the community members’ 125th Anniversary Gift, up to $5 million. If the community donates $5 million to the capital fund during the 125th Anniversary Gift Initiative, then Neil and Jasheen’s gift to Harker will be $10 million. The Mehta Endowment in Support of Scholarships and Entrepreneurship will primarily provide need-based scholarships to qualified students who would otherwise not be able to attend Harker, and supports the school’s commitment to diversity. In addition to funding scholarships, the endowment will enhance Harker’s business and entrepreneurship department by creating the Mehta Scholar Program, which will help to build and engage the Harker community of student, alumni and parent entrepreneurs and venture investment professionals in meaningful ways. Neil is a member of Harker’s inaugural upper school graduating class. He is the founder and managing director of Green Oaks Capital and he credits his Harker experience for helping him be so well prepared for college and his career in capital management. Below are portions of the speech he delivered at the Leadership Donor Celebration; for a full transcript, read the story at Harker News. Sincerely, Brian Yager, Head of School Harker changed my life in remarkable ways, and ever since I graduated, I’ve been looking for opportunities to pay it forward. It’s no exaggeration to say that whatever personal or professional accomplishments I’ve enjoyed in my life wouldn’t have been possible without the opportunities that I was afforded at Harker. I had extraordinary teachers who challenged me intellectually. I had sports coaches who put in time and effort to shape the person I would become. And I had exceptional peers who were by my side throughout high school, many of whom remain my closest friends even today. As more time has passed since graduation, I’ve come to appreciate a few things. First, while raw talent is evenly distributed, the opportunity to make the most of it remains largely limited to the well-off. Too many brilliant young people never attain their greatest potential simply because their families lack the resources to give them the best shot at it. Second, education is one of the highest leverage ways to amplify opportunity. When you are able to influence someone positively, early on in their development, you can profoundly change the arc of their life. And third, Harker provides the kind of education that gives talented students a springboard to become people of consequence – not just learners, but doers. A Harker education is an investment that pays lifelong dividends. Social Media facebook.com/harkerschool instagram.com/harkerschool youtube.com/harkerschool Contact Us 500 Saratoga Ave., San Jose 95129 communications@harker.org Need more spirit wear? Shop the Eagle Store at https://eaglestore.harker.org/ Copyright © The Harker School 2024. All Rights Reserved.