![“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)
Conservatory finishes winter performances
The upper school orchestra, lab band and jazz band performed at the concert. The Spring Concert will be in April.
January 24, 2017
Student Directed Showcase provides a creative outlet for student actors:
Harker’s annual program, Student Directed Showcase (SDS), allowed novice and experienced actors to showcase their skills under student directors. This year’s shows, directed by seniors Chetana Kalidindi, Emre Ezer, Sana Aladin and Kayvon Solaimanpour, featured “Grover,” “Removing the Glove,” “The Importance of Being Earnest” and “Dystopia!”.
“I love teacher directors, but getting to have someone who’s a student is really interesting,” said sophomore Meghna Phalke, who was in “Removing the Glove.”
The students performed Jan. 6 and Jan. 7 at the Blackford theater.
The dance show invites you to the circus:
Rehearsals for the annual dance show at the Blackford campus begin after last Saturday’s dress rehearsal. The show, featuring the theme “Circus,” consists of two acts: “Enter the Circus,” which centers around general circus themed dances, and “Daring acts and sideshow freaks,” which focuses on the more riveting sides of the circus.
“I’m always excited about seeing the students performing on stage after months and months of hard work and rehearsals,” upper school dance instructor Karl Kuehn said. “It’s nice to see everything come to life in a fun and vibrant and entertaining setting.”
This year 153 students are participating in the dance show, as well as nine faculty members and 10 student choreographers. The dancers will perform this Friday and Saturday at the Blackford theater.
Middle school and High school bands perform at winter concert:
Upper school orchestra, lab band and jazz band as well as several middle school instrumental groups performed at the Mexican Heritage Theater on Jan. 13 for the annual Winter Concert.
“The upper school groups are really sounding amazing, and it’s a really difficult program,” said Christopher Florio, upper school instrumental music teacher. “[We] definitely have more students performing now than I think we’ve ever had, and I’m really excited.”
The orchestra will be performing again in March at Carnegie Hall and in April for the Spring Concert at De Anza college.
This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on January 24, 2017.
