Gauri Sood, is a Senior at Harvard College (Class of 2026) and a Rhodes Finalist. She is a writer, researcher, and social entrepreneur dedicated to advancing global mental health through policy and legal reform. Double majoring in Psychology and Government, she focuses on developing effective mental health policies and advocating for ethical technology regulation to safeguard youth. As co-creator of HappiGenius—an innovative social-emotional learning platform offered in app, online, and in-person formats—she has trained over 50 professionals, reached 5,000+ children, and authored both a children’s workbook and storybook on mindfulness and resilience. Her work has been clinically tested under the Mayo Clinic, where she served as lead interventionist, and published in the Journal of Advancing Education Practice. Beyond HappiGenius, Gauri’s research explores intervention strategies for war-affected youth at the Harvard Lab for Youth Mental Health and investigates social biases and self-recognition in text-to-image and large language artificial intelligence models for her senior honors thesis. She also founded SPARK, a youth-focused policy research and advocacy organization at Harvard, which partners with community groups and introduces HappiGenius to Boston-area schools. Her policy experience includes co-drafting a Massachusetts bill for universal Pre-K and testifying before state legislatures on school mental health reform. Outside of academics, she served as captain of the Harvard College Bhangra team, contributes to publications including the Harvard Political Review and Harvard Law School’s [F]law Magazine, and is a devoted dog lover.
