![“[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)
Congressional debaters win awards at the Yale University Invitational
Courtesy of Marjorie Hazeltine
Congressional debaters Aditya Dhar (12), Jason Huang (10) and Nakul Bajaj (9) pose for a team picture at Yale University. This year, the Yale Invitational had competitors from over 200 schools and 28 states.
September 20, 2016
Members of the Upper School debate team traveled to New Haven, Connecticut, to compete at the Yale University Invitational Tournament from Sept. 16 to Sept. 18.
The Invitational, hosted annually by Yale University, is a national high school speech and debate tournament. This year, Aditya Dhar (12), Jason Huang (10) and Nakul Bajaj (9) represented Harker in a field of 221 participants, an increase from last year’s attendance of 176. Aditya placed third overall, while Jason advanced to the semifinals of the tournament.
“I really enjoyed the tournament. I hoped I would do well and I felt pretty prepared, especially for the elimination rounds,” Aditya said. “It was also really awesome to watch the rest of the Harker team succeed.”
All semifinalists or higher in Student Congress earned a bid to the Tournament of Champions (TOC), a national high school speech and debate tournament hosted annually by the University of Kentucky in April. To qualify for the TOC, hopefuls must earn at least two bids by performing well at tournaments on the national circuit.
The Yale Invitational was also the first tournament for Nakul as a high school competitor. Although Nakul did not advance to the elimination rounds of the tournament, his competitors voted him as one of the top speakers in his rounds.
“It was good that my competitors ranked me higher because I knew that it would likely help me stand out and [win] at future tournaments, as debaters will likely rank those whom they know higher,” Nakul said.
Speech and Congressional Debate coach Marjorie Hazeltine commented on the success of the debaters at the Invitational.
“The thing about Yale is that it’s so early in the season that it’s mostly about getting back into practice,” she said. “What we did expect was the tournament to be a really good learning experience, but to have two out of the three get TOC bids and for Nakul do so well is really exciting.”
The speech and debate team’s next national tournament is the Mid-American Cup, which will be held at Valley High School and Valley Southwoods Freshman High School in Des Moines, Iowa, from Sept. 24 to Sept. 26.
