![Setter Emma Lee (9) sets the ball to the middle during the match against Pinewood on Sept. 12. “[I’m looking forward to] getting more skilled, learning more about my position and also becoming better friends with all of my teammates, Emma said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DSC_4917-2-1200x795.jpg)
![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasnt been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but Ive had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. Theres so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesnt exist, you can build it yourself, Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“Animation just clicked in a way. I had been interested in art, but that felt different. [Animation] felt like it had something behind it, whereas previous things felt surface level. I wasnt making that crazy of things, but just the process of doing it was much more enjoyable, Carter Chadwick (22) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-16-at-9.44.08-AM-900x598.png)
![“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 its played such a major role in who Ive 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 Im [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)
![“[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)
![“Im 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 theres a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyones 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)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you arent going to get those championships if you arent 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)
![“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)
Students attend 2015 National Junior Classical League Convention
Courtesy of Yatcheong Au
Carpe Diem John Hawley, Jai Bahri (9) and Justin Au (10) participate in a session at the NJCL Convention in July in Texas. Five students participated in multiple events, earning commendations and awards.
Five students from Harker attended the National Junior Classical League (NJCL) convention from July 27 to Aug. 1 at Trinity University in Texas.
Maya Nandakumar (‘15), Elisabeth Siegel (12), Justin Au (10), Jin Tuan (8) and Jai Bahri (8) were accompanied by currently retired Latin teacher John Hawley and middle school Latin teacher Lisa Masoni.
JCL is an organization that encourages the interest in the classical arts of Ancient Greece and Rome. The annual Latin convention holds competitions among members.
“I worked on a lot of creative, graphical and classical arts at the convention,” NJCL first vice president Maya Nandakumar (‘15) said.
Students individually studied in advance for each of their contests, which include academic tests, arts contests and costume contests. The Olympika and Ludi competitions mimic the original Greek olympic games with marathons, swimming, track and field events. Certamen, another contest, is a trivia style game that can be played competitively at novice, intermediate and advanced levels.
“There were so many events. One of the biggest [events] for the Upper School was Certamen, where Elisabeth Siegel was one of four people representing California,” Hawley said. “In an essay contest, she won first place at her level.”
The convention has a different theme every year. This year’s theme was “tu ne cede malis, sed contra audentior ito,” Latin for “Yield not to misfortunes, but advance all the more boldly against them.” Students also get to participate in themed spirit week of the convention such as “Tiber Riverwalk,” “Old Western Classics” and “Lone Star-struck by Latin.”
“The number of contests that the convention features allows students to show their prowess,” Hawley said. “I would say that it is very successful. I enjoyed it because being part of California delegation is just really impressive for us.”
JCL students will participate in the state chapter convention in the upcoming school year, where they will get a chance to advance to the National level convention.
This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on August 31, 2015.
Vijay Bharadwaj (11) is one of the opinion editors for The Winged Post and Aquila. She served as the assistant opinion editor and the Wingspan copy editor...
