![“[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)
Did you know: Rahul Shukla’s journey through debate
Rahul Shukla (11) is the policy debate captain. Debate has shaped much of Rahul’s personality over the years.
Rahul Shukla (11) initially joined debate because of a basketball injury, but he quickly became immersed in the speaking, research and social aspects of the activity, leading to his appointment as a policy debate captain.
When Rahul first started policy debate in seventh grade, he was an introvert, but over the past five years, debate has shaped aspects of his personality.
“As I started debate, I started voicing my opinions, I started gaining in interest in political debates,” he said. “Besides the educational aspect of debate, I’ve become a better public speaker, and I’ve learned to research in more effective manner.”
As a debate captain, he represents the debate team in a variety of ways; his responsibilities include announcing results of tournaments during school meetings, directing research and aiding novice and middle school debaters.
Most of his work goes towards researching evidence to counter the arguments of his opponents, but one important exercise for him is a 10 minute speaking drill each day. This drill helps him increase his speaking speed, which is an important aspect of policy debate because of the stringent time limit on speeches.
Policy debate speeches are densely packed with information and arguments, so Rahul finds that his biggest challenge is conveying all of his points in the five or eight minute speeches.
“[The most difficult part of debate is] during a speech when you have so much to say, but you’re given a time limit on that speech so choosing how to say it effectively in an ethos-y manner, while also conveying the point and not spending too much time on one subject,” he said.
He is currently doing research on government encryption, the policy debate topic at the moment.
Tournaments are national events, ranging in location from Florida to Kentucky. As a result, he has had the opportunity to cultivate friendships with students from schools all over the country, so he enjoys the social aspect of attending tournaments. Additionally, he appreciates the educational value of competing.
“I increase my advocacy skills and my public speaking skills by gaining this experience and talking to judges about relevant public policy issues as well as critical issues such as race relations, climate change, economic issues such as the debt ceiling, so I think this all culminates in a very well rounded citizen,” he said.
Rahul is currently attending a tournament in Dallas, the 2015 St. Mark’s School of Texas Tournament, which starts on today and ends on Sunday.
Maya Kumar (11) is the Features Editor for the Winged Post. This is her third year in Journalism and her favorite part is collaborating with fellow journalism...