![“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)
Voting for next year’s ASB council held at lunch
Sarah Bean (11) delivers her ASB candidacy speech in front of the freshmen, sophomores, and juniors during Wednesday’s assembly.
Voting for next year’s Associated Student Body (ASB) Council will be held in the journalism room at lunch today after a week of campaigning and speeches.
Nine candidates are running to fill four positions: Sarah Bean (11) for president; Jessica Chang (11), Ransher Dhaliwal (11), Nikita Mittal (11), and Madhavan Nair (11) for vice president; David Lin (11) for treasurer; and Shikhar Dixit (11), Shannon Hong (10), and Anokhi Saklecha (11) for secretary.
Although the only candidacy requirements are one year of prior student council experience for those running for president and a grade point average higher than 3.0 for all candidates, elected council members are expected to commit between three and four hours per week, in addition to two weekly meetings.
During Homecoming week, spirit week, and other school spirit events, extra hours are required from the officers. They are also responsible for decorating for holidays and planning Hoscars.
Each candidate presented a speech during Wednesday’s assembly to present their platforms and urge students to vote for them.
“My main goal is to help the students have more fun, and just a more enjoyable high school experience,” Sarah said when asked what she hopes to accomplish if elected. “I am really interested in making an impact at this school for the better.”
Because all of the candidates are rising juniors or seniors, underclassmen often rely more heavily on speeches to select the candidates that possess the characteristics they wish to see on ASB.
“I think that [the candidate] should be easy to talk to in person, and smart so that they know what they’re doing,” Sana Aladin (9) said. “I guess a nice person is what I look for more than anything else, so if I wanted to talk to them I could.”
Freshmen, sophomores, and juniors will vote today for the candidates they feel will best serve the student body.
“My hope is that the student body has representation they feel good about and that there’s officers that best representing their needs,” Dean of Students Kevin Williamson said.
Election results will be officially announced to the student body at school meeting on April 14.
This article was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on April 4, 2014
Sheridan Tobin is the co-Editor in Chief of The Winged Post. She is a senior and this is her fourth year on staff. She was the Global Editor and Opinion...
Melina Nakos (12) is a reporter for The Winged Post. This is her third year as a part of the journalism program. She loves to spend time with the rest...