![“I wasn't discouraged by some of the obstacles we faced. I learned a lot from the leadership. I found that different people need different ways of receiving feedback — you can't [just] tell them to do something and expect the best. [Some] people needed more incentive. A large part of my role was to figure out what worked for everyone and to figure out how to lead all these separate individuals as a team,” Suhana Bhandare (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SuhanaBhandare_JasmineHansra-1-1200x798.jpg)
![“This is actually from Randy Pausch Randy P. Brick: ‘Walls are there for a reason. You have to show how much you want to overcome them.’ You have to show how much you want something. That's what I've always been able to do with tennis, Link Crew and getting that internship [with Kushy Baby]. It’s important pushing through that — getting around that brick wall, climbing over it or clawing through it,” Yash Sachdeva (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/YashSachdeva_RamBatchu-copy-1200x1002.jpg)
![“[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)
School meeting recap – 3/24
The French National Honors Society began selling baked goods and home-made macarons today and will continue to every day after school. The sale is held as a fundraiser to help Haitian citizens still affected by the aftermath of Haiti’s 2010 earthquake. Wednesday long lunch sales will include crepes with toppings such as nutella, whipped cream, and fruit.
On Saturday, March 29, the Upper School’s ninth annual Research Symposium, organized by WiSTEM, will be held from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Featuring speakers include Khan Academy’s Salman Khan, UCSC professor Dr. Claire Max, alumni Ilya Sukhar (‘03). The symposium will also exhibit upper and middle school posters and formal talks, corporate exhibitions such as Tesla test drives, activities for preschoolers and lower school students, and STEM Challenge for fifth graders. Standard admission for students is $5 and $10 for adults.
A reception for Near and Mitra Grant scholars for research in U.S. history and humanities, respectively, will be held in April. Seniors Kevin Duraiswamy, Divya Kaladindi, Connie Li, Angela Ma, Zina Jawadi, Maya Madhavan, Anisha Padwekar, and Monica Thukral will have their work published on the library portal. Applications for the 2014-2015 Near and Mitra Grants are due on May 2 and open to rising seniors.
Junior Kelly Wang and senior Monika Lee were both selected to exhibit their artwork in the Santa Clara County High School Art Juried Exhibition at the Art Museum of Los Gatos after submitting works according to the theme “Art is a Conversation.”
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards included fifteen winners of Gold Keys, Silver Keys, and Honorable Mentions in the visual arts category. Freshman Meilan Steimle won silver in the short story category for the National Award.
In correspondence with the Multicultural Fair on Wednesday, lunch this week will feature a different cultural dish every day. However, due to low lunch grades in the past week, Fresh Mex and the dessert table will be gone on Tuesday, although the ice cream reward for good lunch grades at the beginning of the month will still be given this week.
With the goal of empowering women and girls globally, the Rising International Club will hold a Home Party on Sunday, March 30, to showcase handmade jewelry, fashion accessories, and home decor crafted by women around the world. In addition, the party will showcase ethnic Indian jewelry and accessories and original work by Veena Subrahmanyam as well as guest speaker Pragati Grover.
Applications and nominations for ASB have begun as students collect signatures for candidacy, and the next Career Connect session will be held during Wednesday long lunch. Additionally, rising juniors will select their Recreate Reading choices during Tuesday class meeting, and rising sophomores will make their selections during Thursday advisory. All students must register by Monday, March 31. Failure to do so will result in an assigned study hall.
There will be an alternate schedule on Thursday for Hoscars.
Arden Hu, copy editor for the TALON Yearbook, is a senior and has been on staff for three years. She is also part of the varsity tennis team and enjoys...
Vasudha Rengarajan is the Editor-in-Chief of Harker Aquila. As former Features editor and Sports editor for Aquila and a reporter for The Winged Post,...