![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)
![“[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)
San Diego: Journalism students present at national journalism convention
Juniors Juhi Gupta and Vasudha Rengarajan answer questions about keeping the flow of news constant on a news site in their presentation at the NSPA convention in San Diego.
SAN DIEGO – Harker Aquila staff presented a breakout session about online news coverage to students and advisers attending the National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) convention in San Diego on Friday.
Practicing for our @nhsjc session! #nhsjc @HarkerAquila Come to “Putting the New in Online News” in Aqua 314 at noon pic.twitter.com/cff6N3CWhb
— Juhi Gupta (@judgejuhi) April 11, 2014
The seminar, entitled “Putting the ‘new’ in online news,” was led by Aquila multimedia editor Juhi Gupta (11), Winged Post managing editor Apoorva Rangan (11) and Aquila features editor Vasudha Rengarajan (11).
“Clear vision, organization, and follow-through.” – Harker Aquila’s three-step plan for comprehensive news coverage. #newinnews #nhsjc
— Harker Aquila (@HarkerAquila) April 11, 2014
Over 300 sessions in newspaper, yearbook, online, and law were held from April 10 to April 13 at the NSPA convention, themed “making waves.” Aquila’s presentation, one of the few student-run seminars, demonstrated to students how best to maintain fresh content and organize reporters with a program-wide system that enables daily, up-to-date coverage.
Juniors Juhi Gupta, Apoorva Rangan, and Vasudha Rengarajan discuss a three-step strategy for keeping coverage regular and comprehensive during their presentation at the NSPA convention.
The team discussed challenges faced when planning for the presentation.
“The process is not intuitive on first glance,” Apoorva said. “[It was hard to] make it more accessible or make sure more people understood what we were saying, bringing it down to the basics.”
The staff found the session a “new” and “engaging” experience nonetheless.
“We actually had something to contribute to people coming from across the nation,” Juhi said. “People were very invested in what we had to say. It was amazing to see what we could help them with.”
The seminar concluded with a Q&A session, in which the editorial staff of various publications from around the nation inquired on how best to incorporate such strategies into their own journalism programs.
“Although you are a peer, you are also a leader.” – Aquila’s Vasudha R. emphasizes accountability in news coverage. #newinnews #nhsjc
— Harker Aquila (@HarkerAquila) April 11, 2014
The Upper School journalism program went on to secure the second place Best of Show Award in the category of Broadsheet Newspaper at the awards ceremony yesterday.
Elisabeth Siegel (12) is the editor-in-chief of the Winged Post. This is her fourth year in Journalism, and she especially loves production nights and...
Shay Lari-Hosain (12) is the Editor-in-Chief and co-founder of Wingspan Magazine. Shay has interviewed 2013 Nobel Laureates, authors like Khaled Hosseini...