November 2024
By Gabriela Semenov, Staff Reporter
He’s the classmate that helps you find your answers: he’s the friend that motivates you to do your best: he’s the guy to welcome you at a Cardinal Volleyball game– running the show in a perfectly orchestrated symphony of dirty jerseys, when and where’s, and the new bi-weekly Instagram post. He’s Everardo Tovar, Senior Class President of 2025 and legacy member of the KAC Volleyball Team and Athletic Program.
Everardo Tovar, or Eve—a nickname used by his friends—has been a Kippster since his first year of school as a kindergartener at KIPP Austin Comunidad. He went to KIPP Austin College Prep Middle School and, in 2021, entered KAC as a freshman for the Class of 2025.
Eve stayed mostly under the managerial radar for his Freshman and Sophomore years at KAC; however, as the fall Semester of his Junior year approached, his priorities took a sharp turn.
As Senior year went on for then Head Manager, Sarianna Martinez, the persistent demands of Senior priorities captured her time from the team and consequently, someone had to fill in. When asked about Eve’s recruiting process, Head Volleyball Coach DeTosha Hurst said he was a product of nepotism–Sarianna had guided Coach Hurst to Eve, coining his legacy in a single phrase, “I have the perfect person.”
And near perfect, Eve was. In late 2023, he instantly began fulfilling the Head Manager role for KAC Volleyball and soon initiated himself as an assistant for Coach Hurst, creating intricate organizational systems, communication networks, and Social Media content for the team.
During an interview, I asked Coach Hurst, “How has Eve helped you?” At the time, I was expecting a minimal description of what being a Head Manager entailed– and while our interview was not barren of his job description, Coach Hurst was extremely thoughtful with her response, explaining, “–He’s extremely possessive when it comes to things that he’s responsible for…he’s extremely mature, and, he can be able to kind of mainstream being a teenager and being prepared for the adult world…He’s a cat of a different color, I definitely can say, but he is also a humongous anchor to that boat that’s called Coach Hurst…”
A close friend of Eve, Natzel Canales, describes Eve as inspirational, diligent, and persistent. When asked, “Is Eve a Good Friend?” her face lit up, and out came a flood of admiration for her friend. “Every time I talk to him, he makes his comments very personal and they always keep me going…just seeing him brings my motivation up!”
When asked about Everardo’s work ethic– who Eve was when his organizational habits came out of hiding and his chirpy, sporadic persona went into hibernation– Natzel responded, “Besides being a manager…he was also in Robotics for a period of time and he was a part of strategic partnerships…he planned events… and it was always so well done– it was all by him. He always pushed his hardest.”
For my last interview, I wanted to hear from Eve himself. We found ourselves in a deserted, quaint room in the Math hallway, where, for 45 minutes, I berated him about who he was, where he lived, his Social Security number, the names of each of his family members– Haha, just kidding! Maybe that’s what it felt like to him– but my intentions were simple; I wanted to hear from him: void of distraction: concentrated with understanding.
His responses were nothing short of insightful and full of thought. He described to me his approach to taking on heavy work-loads, his transition into prioritizing volleyball, and how the demands of being a manager helped him better prepare for the stress of his last year as a high school student; what it takes to be a successful, functioning young adult ready to take on the world! He acclaimed a lot of his growth mindset to his friends and past mentors like senior Karina Benitez and KAC alumni Sarianna Martinez. He expressed, “They showed me what it meant to be a leader…and my ability to adapt…” Stamping his point by saying resolutely, “–We don’t quit, we don’t give up, we keep going…what do you need at that moment, to fix that problem; even if it’s a minor solution, how do you keep going?”
Eve has goals; not just of graduating or matching with Questbridge in December, but of being involved in and contributing his efforts to greater causes beyond himself. He told me that, besides Nursing, he has an affinity for Public Health; “I’m very passionate about solving health disparities, whether it be because of class, race, sex, or gender! Those are factors that are always impacting our community!”
He wants to be a part of change in the Medical field, just as he’s been a part of change amongst his classmates, and as a part of Cardinal Athletics… as a representation of every hard-working, spirited KIPP student in the Nation!
When introducing himself, his first thought– in character of him, of course, was to be professional, “I’m Everardo Tovar, I’m the Senior Class President of 2025, I’m the Assisting Managing Director for Athletics and a Social Media and Outreach Manager for Volleyball!”
I thought to myself, I just asked this freshly turned eighteen-year-old who he is and his first response was to tell me his titles. I’m not an admissions officer! I’m a friend!
So I asked again, “But… who are you?” And hesitantly, with confidence growing in each word of his response, he said, “Who am I…uh– that’s a tough question…does it have to go beyond my roles? Say– I’m your classmate, your friend, I’m your close-confidant…but I’m an amazing person, too.”
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