![“[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)
Cockroaches crowd Upper School campus
Journalism advisor Ellen Austin and first period journalism students found cockraches on the floor of the room this morning. The infestation is due to a decision not to treat city sewage with roach insecticide.
Upper School students noticed roaches crawling around campus this week, the result of a city-wide change in sewage treatment.
The campus perimeter was sprayed with insecticide to rid the school of the critters over Spring Break.
Online Editor-in-Chief Darian Edvalson (12) described what he saw in his first period journalism class.
“There were a bunch of dead cockroaches and a few alive ones all around the classroom, and it was pretty disgusting,” he said.
The surviving bugs have infested classrooms and can be spotted campus-wide. They entered campus through city sewage lines, which are no longer being treated by the insecticide chemicals.
Upper School groundskeeper Fabian Arias said that the campus was rid of most of the bugs.
“I pretty much walk every inch of this campus, and I find them throughout dying off,” he said.
The groundskeepers sprayed insecticide in the journalism room, one of the infested areas on campus. They plan to tackle the issue similarly when other classrooms report cockroach infestations.
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,...
Anokhi Saklecha (12) is the Global Editor for the Winged Post. She has been in the journalism program for the past three years. She loves the creativity,...