![“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)
Homecoming dance date shifts to accomodate Saturday game
This year the Homecoming game will take place one Saturday before the dance, which is Oct. 11.
The Varsity Football team will play its annual Homecoming game on Oct. 4. However, unlike past years, the game will be held on a Saturday night, not a Friday. Because of this change, the Homecoming dance will be held the following weekend, on Oct. 11.
The game was originally scheduled to be on a Friday night, as in past years. Due to an accidental league scheduling conflict, the original opponent, San Jose High School, had to pull out of the game, forcing the coaching staff to find another challenger.
According to Head Coach Ronald Forbes, they “hand picked” the team’s new opponent, Ribet Academy, based on factors including school size, roster size, player stature, and season records.
“We did our research […] so we hope it translates into a competitive game,” Forbes said. “But we’ve never played them and we don’t have any film on them.”
Ribet Academy, a small private school located in Los Angeles, will send its players to the Bay Area over the weekend. The game will be played on a Saturday due to the distance the opposing team needs to travel.
Ordinarily, the Homecoming dance is held on Saturday night, following the Friday night game. After this year’s game was scheduled, Student Council worked with faculty and administration to plan the date of the dance.
Before Matriculation, class officers were leaning towards the latter. However, after talking to other students, they decided against that idea because the game’s outcome could possibly impact people’s moods, the later end time could extend past students’ curfews, and the timing would make the dance less formal.
“The original intent of holding the dance on Saturday after the game was to boost attendance at the game,” Spanish teacher and 2015 Class Dean Diana Moss said. “With the change, we really want to encourage all students to come out and support our fabulous football team.”
After school on Wednesday, Butch Keller, Head of the Upper School, approved moving the dance to Saturday, Oct.11.
This piece was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on August 29, 2014.
Apoorva Rangan (12) is the Editor-in-Chief of The Winged Post and a fourth-year staff member. She has previously served as the paper’s Managing Editor...
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...