![“[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)
Captains’ Council established, holds first meeting
Varsity boys water polo captain Matthew Hajjar (12) reaches for the ball during a game against Monta Vista. The council includes both junior varsity and varsity team leaders from all Harker sports.
October 17, 2018
The captain’s council, a group of about 50 athletic captains and other emerging team leaders, met for the first time on Sept. 18.
The council, led by athletic director Dan Molin, volleyball coach and middle school athletic director Theresa “Smitty” Smith, water polo coach Ted Ujifusa and football head coach Mike Tirabassi, was established this year to foster leadership qualities within sport captains and other team leaders. Through eight seminar-style workshops throughout the year, the coaches hope to enable team captains and leaders to take charge and guide their teams more effectively.
“We want to start them young, and hopefully also what they all will learn will trickle into the student body as a whole. We view the athletes as leaders, and that can really translate well. Not immediately, and not so tangibly right away, but over a year or so, we will be able to see a good representation of our leaders in the Harker community,” Dan Molin, the Upper School athletic director, said.
The group includes both junior varsity and varsity captains as well as younger team leaders from all Harker sports, including those from the winter and spring seasons. As the year progresses, the athletic department will continually be adding new leaders to the council.
In their first meeting, the council discussed various aspects of leadership and broke up into small groups to talk about leaders they admired and their characteristics.
“We discussed the qualities sports leaders have and how they’re able to lead their teams well,” Olivia Guo (10), who attended the first meeting as an emerging leader on the girls golf team, said. “I think it went really well.”
Coaches were asked to identify members of their team, including freshmen, who exhibited an interest in leadership. These athletes were then asked to fill out an application which consisted of six questions regarding leadership in athletics.
“It was time to get this thing going. I’ve seen this done at other schools and the success they’ve had,” Molin said. “[The results are] nothing tangible that you can see, but it’s more like what you’ll be able to feel and sense a couple years away.”
This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on Oct. 17, 2018.
