![“[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)
Upper school holds annual Homecoming dance
Students crowd onto the dance floor for Cupid’s “Cupid Shuffle.” The DJ also played DJ Casper’s “Cha-Cha Slide” during tonight’s dance.
September 22, 2017
The upper school held its annual Homecoming dance today from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. in Nichols Atrium.
A senior fundraiser, the senior class council began preparations for the event earlier in September. Tickets ordered last week via an online form emailed to the student body cost 10 dollars, and senior class council members began selling tickets this week outside Manzanita for 15 dollars. Attendees were also able to purchase tickets at the door for 20 dollars.
“I thought [the dance] was very good,” senior class treasurer Justin Xie said. “The senior class did a great job hosting the dance. The DJ and the songs were pretty good. In general, it was a very pleasant and fun experience. I really enjoyed that fact that they had the chess pieces out for us to take a break from dancing, which is a very physically exhausting activity.”
The senior class council checked in students before the dance. Around the dance floor, small tables held snacks such as chips, chocolate, Ruffles, gummy worms and Twizzlers. This year’s dance also featured a laser light show, a vapor fog machine and a photo booth. The DJ played both radio hits and songs students requested on a form by the DJ station.
“I didn’t know some of the songs, but I’d heard of them,” Kristin Tong (9) said. “I feel like if you don’t know the lyrics you can’t really get hyped, but it was better than middle school.”
A student bends over to write a song title on the song request form by the DJ booth. This year’s dance featured a laser light show, a vapor fog machine and a photo booth.
While last year’s Homecoming dance took place in early November, student council and Spirit Club decided to push this year’s dance back to late September to allow students to attend the event and still prepare for the November SAT tests, a point of conflict for many last year.
Tomorrow’s home football game against the Rio Vista High School Rams marked the last day of this year’s Homecoming festivities.
Correction: September 26, 2017
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the Rio Grande High School Rams as the visiting team of the varsity football team’s Saturday Homecoming game. This article has been edited to correct this error to the Rio Vista High School Rams.
