Fifth grade is where it all began for Coppell High School senior Choir president Mihira Kada. From Kada nervously stepping onto the stage in her first show at Valley Ranch Elementary school, to strongly finishing her high school choir career on an inspirational note at the 2023 Spring Vivace Concert.

As a young girl who had been taking piano lessons and greatly enjoying Valley Ranch Elementary school’s music class, Kada thought to herself: “Why don’t I try pursuing choir so I can have chances to perform while being able to do what I love?”

Propelling this passion at Coppell Middle School East, Kada wanted to branch out and try running for various officer positions throughout those three years. While she didn’t receive a choir officer title in middle school, Kada was not disheartened, rather she was twice as determined to work harder for an opportunity at a choir leadership position in her upcoming high school years.

“Although I wasn’t her choir director in middle school, she immediately stood out to me in their choir shows and I was able to connect with her in eighth grade when she conducted ‘Carol of the Bells’, along with seeing how great of a positive attitude she had,” head choir director Bona Coogle said. “Once I got her as my student her freshman year, I promptly thought to myself, ‘Oh yeah, that’s the outgoing Mihira I know,’ only increasing my interest in working with her for the next four years.”

Kada is grateful to have become so close to her choir directors, Coogle and choir assistant director Aaron Coronado, as she wouldn’t have the appreciation or have been able to come this far in her choir career without them. Coogle sees Kada as a mature student with incredible work ethic, an approachable friend to every choir member with a vibrant personality, and as a “helping hand” as she never turns down an opportunity to make herself useful. 

“My choir directors have taught me that having fun is definitely not the only thing that’s going to get you to be the best, along with being role models, teaching me how hard you have to work to put yourself out there,” Kada said. “While they may seem strict, whatever they do for choir members is because they want to help us grow and is for us to understand that life is not always going to be easy, especially because there aren’t any shortcuts.”

With Kada as the choir president for the 2022-23 school year, junior Roma Jani holds the choir vice president position. Jani has become very close with Kada and looks up to her in many ways, but most importantly she sees Kada as an inspiration, constantly motivating her to only work harder.

“She is immensely hardworking and her love for choir is what helps drive her to push every member in choir to do their best; it’s clear that it’s her passion that makes her a natural leader,” Jani said. “I think of her as an older sister and I know Mihira truly is going to flourish in life with her immaculate ability to make everyone feel welcome.”

In the fall, Kada will attend the University of Texas at Dallas, majoring in supply chain business at the Jindal School of Management. She aspires to be a part of the honors program and hopes to utilize her high school singing accomplishments to join a singing or dancing group in college.

“A piece of advice that I would give to any younger student interested in joining choir, is that at the moment, it will be really tough or nerve wracking to perform in front of an audience,” Kada said. “However, you’re going to need to work hard and prove that you hold this passion inside of you, presenting you with opportunities better than you could imagine.”

Follow Rhea Choudhary (@rhea_choud) and @CHSCampusNews on Twitter