First published in the March 2021 issue of Baton Rouge Parents magazine and on its website.
Amazing kids run in the Iyer family. Recently named the East Baton
Rouge Parish Public School System’s elementary student of the year, Dev,
a fifth grader at Buchanan Elementary, is following in the footsteps of
his brother, Jay, now a high school senior who was also honored as a
fifth grader.
Dev excels academically. “I’m particularly proud of getting principal’s
list in all my years in elementary school,” he says. He’s already
planning a bright future. “I want to become an architectural engineer
when I grow up,” he says. The career, which would follow in the
engineering footsteps of his dad and grandfather, combines Dev’s love of
math, science and art.
A multisport athlete, Dev participates in swimming, taekwondo, basketball, baseball and soccer. He’s also an accomplished pianist and artist. Dev’s artwork was chosen as the EBR school system’s annual holiday card three years in a row.
Dev is involved in community service, volunteering at assisted living centers, religious institutions, and Mind Relief, an organization the Iyers established to support caregivers and family members of those suffering from neurodegenerative diseases.
“Dev is a role model in his school,” says Raj Iyer, Dev’s dad. “He is an incredibly hard-working kid who just never gives up and keeps going at it until he gets it done.” Dev also has a great sense of humor. “He’s a really witty guy whose spontaneous answers throw us off guard,” says Usha Iyer, Dev’s mom.