Karina Koppikar
Hi, I'm Karina!
I'm 17 years old and the author of Six-Point Star.​ I thought of the idea for the novel after the Israel-Hamas conflict escalated on October 7th, 2023, observing how the students at my school, who were already very culturally divisive, began to use religious differences as a means to discriminate against each other. Six-Point Star was written with the aspiration of opening up conversations about religion. I hope that, one day, religion will no longer be used as a source of isolation and that religious differences can be celebrated, not feared. Beyond writing, I love working with kids of all different backgrounds, serving as an ambassador for global nonprofit Loving Library, a volunteer tutor for Ukrainian refugees at ENGin, one of My Tasty Table's founders, and youth mentor for the Swift Youth Foundation. As a Bollywood dancer, professional commercial actress, and theatre performer, I am also heavily involved in the arts. Having recently spent my summer working for a lobbying firm right on Capitol Hill, I dream of one day entering a career in politics.
Community Accolades
I'm incredibly grateful to have received some recognition for my work with Six-Point Star and other community service engagements. Click the video to view a speech I gave after being selected as one of Junior Achievement Arizona's 18 Under 18. I spoke about the importance of advocacy and using the power of literacy to enact social change.
I was also recently named the City of Phoenix's Outstanding Youth Leader of the Year. After having the honor of serving as one of 16 district finalists, I was both shocked and incredibly excited to be chosen as the overall winner out of the whole city! I'm beyond grateful to Mayor Kate Gallego and the Phoenix Rotary Club for this honor.