Deven Parikh, grade 11, joined his mother, Dev Parikh, ACS vice president of Go to Market for Oracle, at a communication debate workshop at Oracle in late July to help sixth grade girls learn the basics of speech and debate. Parikh has been in the Harker speech and debate program for five years, and expressed a desire to teach others the skills he has gained in the program. 

At the workshop, Deven Parikh presented a 20-minute lecture on public speaking. “Prior to the actual workshop, I spent ample time communicating with a representative from Apple to obtain donated Apple iPads,” he said. “Many of the children we would be working with did not have electronics at home, so by providing them with iPads, they were able to research a topic to debate. At the end of the workshop, they were able to keep the iPads.”

Parikh helped both sides prepare their arguments for a debate on the U.S. policy on immigration. “During the actual debate, I was the moderator and provided tips at the end to help them improve their public speaking and research skills,” he added.

“It was great helping out the other children who are not as lucky as we are. Going to Harker, everyone has an iPhone, AirPods and an updated MacBook, yet others are not as lucky as we are. It felt great to help the community,” he finished.