![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
In preparation for final exams, the administration gifted students five additional extra helps periods over a three day time span. The aim was to reduce stress, and the response was overwhelmingly positive.
In order to provide students with ample time to prepare, extra helps were scattered throughout the beginning of the week, with one on Monday, two on Tuesday, and another two on Wednesday. Students used their extra time in various ways, some opting to simply go home early and others choosing to stay and study.
“I mainly went to teachers to ask them questions about the finals,” Nikhil Kishore (10) said.
Other students chose to focus their studies on one subject during the extra helps, saving the other subjects for study at home.
“I went to chemistry for every single one of them,” Felix Wu (10) said.
While some students decided to study alone, others took the opportunity to work with their peers. The extra helps encouraged students to stay on campus to review for exams, facilitating an environment that allowed them to discuss concepts and share knowledge in a helpful way.
“A whole bunch of students got together, and we got to collaborate […] We created study guides together and then went home to study them during our own time,” Helena Dworak (9) said, explaining a useful study system that was more accessible this year.
Ultimately, the decision to increase the number of extra helps this week was a popular one, leaving many feeling pleased and prepared.
“I think it was incredibly beneficial,” AP World History and AP Art History teacher Donna Gilbert said. “[Students] could divide their time up without having to run around […] I’ve had students in my classroom in every single extra help,”
Many students did not neglect this extra time, seeing it as an excellent opportunity to visit teachers when they wanted clarification on the material.
“It gave me the opportunity to go to some of my teachers when I usually wouldn’t have,” Arthur Shau (11) said, commenting on the commodious schedule over the three days .
With the extra time to study and meet with teachers during the extra helps, several students were able to utilize the “spacing effect,” spreading out their material to ensure a higher percentage of information retainment.
![LALC Vice President of External Affairs Raeanne Li (11) explains the International Phonetic Alphabet to attendees. "We decided to have more fun topics this year instead of just talking about the same things every year so our older members can also [enjoy],” Raeanne said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/DSC_4627-1200x795.jpg)
