![“[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)
Around the clock with Emily Manigo
Upper School Security and Traffic Director, Emily Manigo, starts her day early to prepare the school for the influx of students and faculty.
Upper School Security and Traffic Director, Emily Manigo, starts her day bright and early arriving at the Upper School at 6 a.m. to unlock the campus for both students and faculty. Around 7 a.m., she heads to the front to start her daily traffic.
Manigo advises all students to always look both ways when you cross an area to make sure nothing is coming from either side. Additionally, Manigo hopes for all drivers including student drivers to be cautious of their speed while entering in the morning.
“Dont come in real fast or real slow cause either way it messes up traffic,” Manigo said. “You have to have a good flow.”
Once the clock turns 8:10 a.m., Manigo takes a little break and then returns to the kiosk at the front of the school for the majority of her day.There she keeps a watchful eye of everyone entering and exiting the campus.
“I make sure that no one who comes on campus isn’t someone that shouldn’t be,” Manigo said.
Manigo takes her one hour lunch break at 11 a.m. and returns to the kiosk at 12 p.m. so the other officer can take their lunch as well.
For the rest of the day, Manigo and other officers switch off tasks every half an hour. One roams the campus to make sure that the campus is safe, while the other watches the traffic coming in and out of the school, making sure that people check in at the main office if needed.
As the days ends, Manigo makes her final round of walking through the school at 2:15 till the end of school.
On days of early dismissal, Manigo heads to the back loading zone near the kitchen to work the traffic there. She ensures that all cars park instead of blocking the area where the bus parks for campus shuttles or athletic games.
Besides her work, Manigo just really enjoys getting to see everyone’s faces either at the beginning of the day or at the end.
“I do communicate with students [and] parents,” Manigo said. “I’m a people person and I love talking with people.”
Manigo finally ends her at day at 3 p.m.
This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on Oct. 17, 2014.
Sharanya Balaji (12) is the Editor-In-Chief for Harker Aquila and has been on staff for the past three years. Additionally, during her freshman year she...
Priscilla Pan is the features editor for the Winged Post and co-creator of In a Nutshell. She is a senior and has been part of the journalism program for...