![“[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)
Humans of Harker: Karthik Sundaram dedicates time in the robotics lab
“One thing that is important to me when I do something is to actually be able to see if it gets results, so I like starting from nothing and then over time seeing the robot get built until the finished product. We actually keep a time-lapse of it, which is something I enjoy watching when it’s done,” Karthik Sundaram (12) said.
January 15, 2017
Joining robotics opened many doors for Karthik Sundaram (12). It aided him in his path towards discovering his passion, making new friends and eventually finding volunteer work in a similar field.
Karthik developed an interest in robotics after his parents encouraged him to participate in the club as an extracurricular activity during his sophomore year.
“As I stayed there, I began to enjoy it more, and I could actually make friends with not only people in my grade but also the upperclassmen that were there,” he said.
While building a robot takes weeks of hard work, diligence and skill, Karthik enjoys watching his progress develop into a finished product.
“One thing that is important to me when I do something is to actually be able to see if it gets results, so I like starting from nothing and over time seeing the robot get built to the finished product,” he said. “We actually keep a time-lapse of it, which is something I enjoy watching when it’s done.”
His desire to become more involved in robotics lead him to his current position as the head of the electrical subteam of the club.
“Before, I worked under the vice president, and I would do various jobs and help build the robot,” he said. “Now, I have to not only do that but also manage people, which is something I enjoy doing.”
Karthik takes his interest in the STEM fields to his volunteer work at science museums, in which he monitors and interacts the children who visit the museum.
“I remember one time a helped a boy build a parachute,” he said. “I helped him for a day and he didn’t talk much, but I could see that he was actually learning and growing from it. By pure coincidence, two weeks later, that same family came back, and the parents didn’t recognize me, but I knew the child did because he immediately came back to me even though I was kind of out of view and asked for my help again.”
Despite his busy schedule, Karthik believes a key aspect to enjoying what he does is by incorporating humor in his everyday life. He records his puns in a public document, currently standing at two pages long.
“In most situations, I can find something humorous and create [something] to say about it,” he said. “The biggest thing I like in humor is often with puns and wordplay– the more smarter humor than just slapstick, where people are actually being clever in what they’re doing.”
