![“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)
School meeting recap–10/27
Upper school dean of students Kevin Williamson gives an announcement during class meeting. Students are reminded to remain quiet at the beginning of every school meeting.
October 27, 2015
Dean of students Kevin Williamson reminded students to remain silent at the start of school meetings to hasten all announcements.
CareerConnect is holding Quickbooks Connect, a conference in which students will listen to a presentation about persuasion and a keynote from Oprah Winfrey, next Tuesday during seventh period. Interested students must sign a permission slip due this Friday to advisor Juston Glass.
Students part of The Laramie Project play will perform on Oct. 29, Oct. 30 and Oct. 31. Tickets are still being sold during both lunches in Manzanita Hall. Students can also purchase tickets through The Laramie Project’s Facebook page.
The yearbook staff informed students that the yearbook is $100 until Nov. 16, until which the price will rise to $120. Yearbook forms are outside the journalism room, and those who submit by the end of this week will be entered in a drawing for a free yearbook and cookies.
The football team currently has a record of 7-1 after its victory against St. Vincent de Paul High School. This Friday, the Upper School will host Stellar Preparatory High School in a game to determine the league championship game. Senior night for both football and cheerleading will take place this Friday.
The Cross Country team will compete in the league championships on Nov. 6.
Girl’s golf defeated Mercy Burlingame in its senior night game. Its current record for the season is 6-4.
Girl’s tennis had three wins last week against Presentation High School, Crystal Spring Uplands School and Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory. The team’s current record is 12-2 as they host Castilleja School and Menlo School this Thursday for senior night.
Girl’s water polo lost its senior night game against Santa Clara High School on Thursday.
Boy’s water polo beat Lynbrook High School and won its senior night game. Both water polo teams will play at Fremont and Milpitas in preparation for the league tournament.
Girl’s volleyball lost to Menlo, its first loss in league games. The girls will host Notre Dame-San Jose today at Blackford.
The journalism staff invited students to write for the repeater column “Heart of Harker.” Depending on the number of submissions that they receive for the column, the column will move online to Harker Aquila. Emails for the column submissions should be sent to [email protected].
Student council has opened up spaces in certain classrooms for quiet study. These classrooms will be available during free periods. A schedule will soon be released detailing classes that are open for certain periods.
Students can wear costumes this Friday in the spirit of Halloween. Harker Spirit is holding a Halloween dress up and costume contest during both lunches on Friday. The categories for the contest include: funny, scary, cute, best group and best overall.
This Thursday will run on an alternate schedule to accommodate for an assembly.
