![“[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)
Future Problem Solvers team competes at annual State Bowl
Courtesy of Harker FPS
Harker FPS’ State Bowl attendees pose with their trophies and ribbons. The topic for this year’s State Bowl was identity theft.
April 24, 2017
Members of the Upper School’s Future Problem Solvers (FPS) team competed at the annual FPS State Bowl held this year at the Nueva School last weekend.
Participants were seeded into categories based on their grade level, with seventh through ninth graders competing in the middle division and 10th through 12th graders competing in the senior division. This year’s event asked competitors to analyze and come up with solutions to the issue of identity theft by completing a written packet and choreographing a skit detailing their plan to solve a problem outlined in the packet’s prompt.
In the middle division, team Anvi Banga (9), Jack Hansen (9), Anika Tiwari (9) and Jackie Yang (9) placed fourth with their written packet and fourth in Presentation of Action Plan. In the senior division, team Taylor Lam (10), Sara Min (10), Kelly Shen (10) and Tiffany Wong (10) placed third with their written packet and first in Presentation of Action Plan.
“Because it was our first year competing in the senior division, I wasn’t expecting to place. However, upon finishing the packet, we all felt confident on how we had performed,” Taylor said. “For next year’s FPS season, I am hopefully looking forward to the chance of qualifying and attending the international competition.”
Harker’s two competitors in the middle-senior division of Multi-Affiliate Global Issues Problem Solving (MAGIC), Ashley Jia (10) and Ayesha Baweja (9), completed packets in teams of four with three students from other participating schools. Their groups placed second and first, respectively.
Representing Harker was also the senior team of Rahul Bhetanabhotla (11), Meghana Karinthi (11) and Jessica Wang (11), as well as middle division individuals Kalyan Narayanan (9) and Amla Rashingkar (9) and senior division individual Anika Banga (11).
“I felt like my team and I did our best during the tournament, considering how hectic our schedules had been leading up to the event. I am proud that some of our other teams were able to place at the tournament,” Rahul said. “Next year, I’m looking forward to having one final year to compete with my team and have fun along the way, hopefully to victory.”
The topics for this year’s International Conference and next year’s FPS competition season were also announced at the State Bowl. Participants in this year’s International Conference will address the issue of biosecurity, while next year’s regional and state topics cover the spread of infectious disease, toxic materials, disorders and cloud storage. The topic for next year’s International Conference will be announced in the spring of next year.
