![“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)
Hats off to the Class of 2017: Seniors graduate in Mountain Winery ceremony
The class of 2016 tosses their hats into the air at last year’s graduation ceremony at the Saratoga Mountain Winery. This year, graduation will take place at the Mountain Winery on May 18.
May 11, 2017
Upper School Division Head Butch Keller announced the 2017 baccalaureate and graduation speakers during a senior class meeting on April 17.
Students in the senior class voted on the baccalaureate faculty and student speakers as well as the faculty members to present speeches at other ceremonies held in May and June to celebrate the end of the school year. Keller announced that the baccalaureate faculty speaker will be economics teacher Samuel Lepler and the student speaker will be Aditya Dhar (12).
Baccalaureate is a ceremony held for the junior class, the senior class, faculty and senior parents as an induction of the junior class as seniors and a way to bid farewell to the graduation seniors.
“When he told me, I kind of waffled between being really honored, because it means a lot to me, and being horribly nervous,” Lepler said. “It’s the last time that this school is together with the senior class. There’s a little pressure, but it’s great and always really fun to watch the seniors accomplish what they have and move on.”
In addition, history and social science teacher Damon Halback will speak at the alumni luncheon and math teacher Troy Thiele will speak at the bricklaying ceremony.
The alumni luncheon is held for parents and students of the senior class to honor their becoming alumni. The bricklaying ceremony is held by the Office of Advancement to honor the seniors who will have bricks engraved with their names lain into the walkway that leads to the Patil Performing Arts building.
The alumni luncheon, the bricklaying ceremony and the baccalaureate ceremony will all take place on May 17 at the Upper School.
Keller also named the valedictorian of the class of 2017, Kai-Siang Ang (12), who will also speak at the graduation ceremony. He has been awarded the title of valedictorian by the administration for being the senior with the highest cumulative GPA throughout his high school career.
“Being named valedictorian is [knowing that] I’ve come a long way. There have been a lot of people who have helped me along the way. A lot has changed, and I have a lot to be grateful for,” Kai said. “The most significant impact that [being named valedictorian] has is that I know I have these five minutes in the speech to say something that is valuable to me… I really value that opportunity, and I’ll try to make the most of it.”
This particular graduation will also mark the last time that long-time Head of School Christopher Nikoloff will address the senior class at the graduation ceremony. Nikoloff will be replaced by Brian Yager on July 1. Other speakers and performers at the graduation ceremony will include Chris Malachowsky, one of the founders of the Silicon Valley tech company Nvidia, honor council representatives and various upper school choirs.
Graduation will take place at the Saratoga Mountain Winery on May 18 at 5 p.m.
This piece was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on May 11, 2017.
