![“[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)
Junior class has its last college counseling meeting
College counselor Martin Walsh, begins the meeting and starts addressing the various topics that he will discuss throughout the meeting. This was the last college counseling meeting for the junior class.
The junior class had its last counseling meeting today, which was held in the Nichols auditorium during extra help.
During this meeting, the college counselors, Nicole Burrell, Kevin Lum Lung, Martin Walsh, and Lauren Collins, discussed with the students about where they should be by now, for example the junior questionnaire should be finished and turned into their counselor. In addition to that, the counselors talked about the deadlines that are coming up and how the students should be approaching each step.
Burrell, Co-Director of College Counseling, emphasized the point that the counselors are trying to make: the students have to stay on track and work.
“They have some things to do this summer, and they better do them, and these are deliverables that are actually due on September 1.” she said.
Students also realize the importance of college counseling. Juniors, such as Leon Chin and Shreya Dixit, reflect on their overall experience and thoughts about the process.
“I think the college counseling process [and] all of these classes, have been really helpful,” Leon said. “We’re different from many other schools in that this school really prepares you ahead of time and we start early.”
Similarly, Shreya also appreciates what this process is doing for her and how it helps her.
“It helps you think ahead whereas its easy to get caught up in the moment if you didn’t have college counseling,” Shreya said. “Especially with the junior questionnaire it gives you a deadline and you have to think about yourself and really self reflect instead of always thinking about your grades, AP tests, SATs, etc.”
On the other hand, though Maya Nandakumar (11) finds the college counseling process helpful, she believes it can be degrading towards the students at times.
“I know that the college counselors are trying to give us a realistic picture with the case studies and ease us into the process,” she said. “It’s a bit depressing at the same time to see these perfect people who are just so accomplished not getting into their dream schools.”
Even though today was the last college counseling meeting, the junior class will be able to meet up with their counselors individually until June 5.
Raveena Kapatkar (12) is the Co-Editor-in-Chief of Harker Aquila. She is a senior and this is her fourth year on staff. As a freshman, she was a reporter...