Two HRA Students to Participate in Highly Selective International Surgical Programs through Operation Smile

Hampton Roads Academy is honored to be represented by two students—juniors Indira Hartke ’27 and Gopi Patel ’27—who will be completing international surgical programs through the nonprofit organization Operation Smile in spring 2026.

Patel will travel to Malawi from April 14 through 27, and Hartke to Honduras from May 16 through 22. In their respective countries, both students will work alongside a small group of peers to provide psychosocial care for local children, deliver life-saving supplies and health education, and assist a team of medical professionals as they administer free cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries and comprehensive care to the patients who need them most. The programs reflect Operation Smile’s dedication not only to closing the gap in access to high-quality medical care, but also to training the next generation of healthcare providers who will make a difference in communities across the globe.

Patel’s and Hartke’s selection for this highly competitive opportunity represents an outstanding accomplishment. The two Navigators are among only 40 total high school students throughout the United States who were offered a role on an international surgical team. They have distinguished themselves through academic excellence, leadership, a commitment to service and advocacy, and years of involvement with HRA’s Operation Smile Club.

“All of my students have called their surgical program a life-changing experience,” said Director of Educational Technology Melissa DeBoer, who serves as faculty advisor for Operation Smile at HRA and will be traveling with Patel to Malawi as her sponsor. “We are empowering our students to step out of their comfort zone and see how impactful their actions can be.”

“We All Can Make a Difference, and We Should”

Founded in 1982 by Dr. Bill Magee, a plastic surgeon, and his wife Kathy Magee, a social worker and nurse, Operation Smile now provides educational programs and transformative cleft surgeries to children in 37 countries around the world. Its surgical programs, active year-round, administer care to anywhere from 50 to over 100 patients during a one-to-two-week period.

With its global headquarters in Virginia Beach, the nonprofit is the only organization of its kind in the Hampton Roads area that boasts a fully staffed student programs division. Like HRA itself, the Operation Smile Student Programs team aims to help students grow into compassionate, empathetic leaders who can handle any situation.

“This allows our students to dream big,” DeBoer said. “If students have an idea that promotes education, advocacy, or action, the Operation Smile staff give our students full support” for projects at the school, regional, or international level.

HRA has a longstanding relationship with the nonprofit, dating back to the 1980s. The Operation Smile Club is now the most visible service organization on campus, with more than 80 members spanning the Middle and Upper Schools. Navigators are eligible to join as early as Grade 6, and Middle School members participate in Operation Smile’s interscholastic Rush for Smiles dodgeball tournament each fall, connecting with their fellow community-engaged students as they support a worthy cause.

From Grade 9 onward, opportunities for involvement diversify greatly. During the fall 2025 semester alone, Upper Schoolers in Operation Smile sold snow cones and popcorn to raise funds for five surgeries, held a pickleball tournament, celebrated World Smile Day with a scavenger hunt, volunteered at Newport News Park’s Fall-O-Ween, coached the Middle School dodgeball team, and served up donuts and hot chocolate at Smiles for Breakfast around holiday time. From February 9 through 12, the club observed Spread the Love Week by painting the HRA spirit rock, distributing Valentines as faculty and staff appreciation gifts, educating their peers with a video and trivia games during Homeroom, and collecting soccer balls, coloring books, toothbrushes, clothing, and other mission items to support their classmates soon to go abroad.

Upper Schoolers are also eligible to attend Operation Smile’s annual leadership conference, a prerequisite for international surgical programs. Hartke and Patel, both of whom hold positions on the executive board of HRA’s club, have participated in these conferences the past two summers at Emory University and the University of Maryland and will attend the International Student Leadership Conference in Bangkok in summer 2026. Hartke additionally serves on Operation Smile’s Regional Leadership Council, where Patel will join her next year.

“I call it the ‘choose your own adventure’ club,” DeBoer said. “There are opportunities for everyone. The biggest takeaway is we all can make a difference, and we should.”

Her message to students is simple: “Find what breaks your heart and do something about it.”

Going Global

Hartke, an aspiring craniofacial and plastic surgeon, has eagerly answered this call.

“Through my work with Operation Smile at both the school and regional levels, she said, “I’ve noticed that, not only does Operation Smile serve people around the world with cleft, but they also try their best to help anyone they can,” from burn victims to families experiencing food insecurity. “I decided to apply for one of their international programs and continue to serve others not only in my local community, but now on an international scale.”

Patel, who plans to study global health in college, is equally excited by the opportunity to help diverse communities far from home while building professional skills. “Participating in an international surgical program will allow me to understand patient care in low-resource settings and gain perspective on culturally responsive healthcare,” she said.

Enthusiastic about immersing themselves in a new environment where they can have a tangible impact on the lives of others, Patel and Hartke both embraced the challenge of pursuing a spot on one of Operation Smile’s highly selective programs overseas. Their path began some two years ago, as they took on active roles in service projects and advocacy campaigns through HRA’s Operation Smile Club and demonstrated leadership at their school and beyond. Deep engagement with the organization, involvement in summer conferences, strong academic standing, and stellar faculty recommendations ultimately earned them their coveted places on missions to Malawi and Honduras.

In January, the two juniors attended a three-day workshop to meet the other members of their teams and prepare for their surgical programs. Medical professionals and other staff provided the students with extensive training on basic healthcare, CPR, dental hygiene, burn care and prevention, post-lip procedure care, nutrition, and cross-cultural empathy. The students then made posters covering these topics and learned how to deliver educational presentations to patients and families, one of their principal duties during their programs.

In addition to assisting the surgical team as needed, the students’ other responsibilities will include facilitating play therapy with children and caregivers, distributing donated toys and supplies, and demonstrating compassion to families as they navigate a physically and emotionally taxing period.

“I am most looking forward to playing with the kids and seeing them gain confidence,” Patel said. “My role on this trip is to make the patient feel loved.”

The Next Horizon

For many Operation Smile students who have participated in international surgical programs, the experience has proven to be just the beginning of a much longer journey of service spanning the globe.

After successfully completing one of these programs, students may pursue further international missions with Operation Smile during their undergraduate years through the UVoice and UShadow programs. Indeed, many HRA alumni have. DeBoer’s own daughter, Kylie ’15, chaperoned students for Operation Smile in Bolivia in October 2025 and will do so again in Panama this May. Recent graduate Zack Caulford ’25, currently a freshman at Florida Southern College, is perfecting his Spanish language skills while studying abroad in Alicante, Spain, this semester in anticipation of volunteering with a surgical team in Paraguay next year. Operation Smile recently invited him to speak about his experiences with the organization in Madrid.

Rudrani Ghoshal ’23, who completed an international surgical program just before graduating from HRA after her initial trip was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, has remained exceptionally active with Operation Smile. Now in her third year in the BA/MD program at Siena University, she continues to attend summer conferences, participated in a second program with UVoice, and will embark on a UShadow trip to Morocco during summer 2026.

This year’s Navigators headed overseas with Operation Smile are already eager to carry on this proud tradition. As Hartke remarked, “My dream is to continue my work with Operation Smile through university and medical school and to one day return on a surgical program as a surgeon.”

For DeBoer, this dedication to ongoing engagement with Operation Smile is delightful but unsurprising.

“Students go anticipating they will be just helping others, when they actually receive way more than they can ever give,” she said. “It is a chance to give hope while learning we can all make a difference.”