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For Raina Khanna ’26, volunteering with Habitat for Humanity started with building houses. It eventually led her to think bigger — about policy, data and the systems behind housing affordability.

“At first, I was really excited to finish one house,” Raina said. “But when it was done, I realized there could be so much more being done on a larger scale.” 

That realization sparked a deeper interest in affordable housing and urban policy, one that has shaped much of her work during her time at North Shore Country Day.

Raina founded the school’s Habitat for Humanity Club as a sophomore, helping students learn about housing insecurity while encouraging volunteer involvement with the organization. Through her own work with Habitat, she has volunteered more than 200 hours, helping install flooring, insulation and staircases in homes across the area.

“I think it’s a really good opportunity to get involved with different communities,” she said.

Her interest in housing issues eventually expanded beyond volunteer work. After an internship with the North River Commission, a Chicago nonprofit focused on affordable housing, Raina spent last summer at DePaul University’s Institute for Housing Studies, researching housing policy and analyzing data related to vacant land use and affordability.

“I realized that math and analytics could help create real policy change,” she said. “Being able to give quantitative evidence can persuade people to make changes in the community.”

That combination of analytical thinking and community impact is part of what draws Raina toward statistics, economics and urban studies — three of the subjects she plans to explore when she heads to Stanford University in the fall.

“I’ve always liked math,” she said. “I wanted to find a way to use it to help communities and not just do math for the sake of math.”

Alongside her work in housing advocacy, Raina also helped grow North Shore’s DECA program from just three members to more than 30 in a year. As an upperclassman mentor, she helped younger students prepare for competitions while learning how to teach and lead others along the way.

She is equally proud of her leadership with the Lurie Children’s Club, where she served as social media director and special events director for a multi-school organization supporting Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. By helping rethink the group’s social media strategy and fundraising efforts, the organization increased annual fundraising from $100,000 to more than $250,000.

“I think serving a community means actively trying to improve it,” she said. “Not just for yourself, but for everyone around you. Real change happens when people are willing to get involved and look for new ways to help.”