![“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)
Students and faculty dress up to celebrate Halloween
Sophomore Dolan Dworak dressed up as a rainbow unicorn. Students and faculty celebrated Halloween yesterday by dressing up in costumes.
October 31, 2015
As the bell rang to signal the beginning of school, upper school students and faculty members wearing onesies, makeup or other costumes made their way to class on Friday in celebration of Halloween.
Dressing up and wearing costumes on Halloween or on the Friday before are an annual tradition at the upper school.
Spirit competitions were held during both lunches. The competition determined the best costumes for the following categories: funny, scary, cute, best group, best overall and best faculty. This event followed the pumpkin carving spirit competition that was held on Wednesday during long lunch.
Many students dressed up as a group, as animals, tourists or superheroes.
Tong Wu (12) and her friends dressed up as rock, paper and scissors.
“I’m a pair of scissors. We have a group of four, so we searched on the internet, so we found rock, paper, scissors, [and] blank,” Tong Wu (12) said. “I went to the garage and got a cardboard box and then cut it out and then painted it, then I taped it to myself.”
Instead of wearing costumes, some students took this opportunity to coordinate outfits.
“I’m dressed up as a Scotsman because during the summer the Harker School went to Scotland for the Fringe Festival, and a bunch of my friends, we all bought kilts, so we’re dressed up as this,” Brandon Stoll (11) said.
Also common were scary or traditional Halloween costumes like skeletons, witches and cats.
“I’m a skeleton and I wore this costume because it was convenient considering we did this costume for Kinetic Krew,” Linus Li (10) said. “Also, seeing people wearing the same costume as you are especially since you’re in the same group, it’s nice to see, especially when everyone is being festive and it’s basically a part of the Harker tradition.”
Some students went trick or treating with their friends, while others went to parties or stayed home for the night. The UNICEF club went to downtown Los Gatos for a fundraiser.
For Harker students, Halloween is a time to have fun dressing up in creative costumes along with friends.
