![“[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)
Major student events this week included the Global Empowerment Outreach (GEO) club week, senior nights for sports, and an east coast alumni update.
“When you talk about senior nights for athletics, the bonds between teammates and coaches illustrates how close and how meaningful an extra-curricular can be. That, to me, in the community is a very important thing.” said Upper School Division Head Butch Keller.
GEO week commenced on Friday October 14 with an assembly featuring guest speaker Tim Nielander from the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI). Throughout the past week, students had the opportunity to take a vow of silence and receive sponsorship from friends. Students received raffle tickets for every $20 they raised to be entered in a drawing for a prize of a plushie microbe. Additionally, GEO sold wristbands, sports bags, and GAVI grams, which students could send to their friends.
The varsity girls and boys water polo teams and the varsity girls tennis team held their senior nights to celebrate twelfth-grade players on Thursday, October 20. Water Polo honored seniors Tariq Jahshan, Jagdeesh Kottapalli, Cole Manaster, Akshay Ramachandran, Jason Yu, Simrun Bhagat, and Kaitlin Halloran, while tennis acknowledged Nicole Dalal, Aranshi Kumar, and Tanya Piskun. The football and cheerleading senior nights will be held on Friday, October 21.
From October 12 to October 16, Keller and his wife, Jane Keller, traveled to Washington D.C. on an alumni visit. They visited Keller’s former advisee Rishi Bhatia (‘11) at Georgetown, who gave them a tour of the campus. The couple also met up with Candace Silva-Martin, former varsity volleyball captain at the Upper School and a current junior at George Washington University. The Kellers are planning a Spring trip to visit alumni at Princeton, Harvard, MIT, and Wellesley.
More events to look forward to next week include the Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) assembly, the TEDx lecture series, and and the Upper School fall play You Can’t Take it with You.
