![“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)
School meeting recap 2/26/19
Members of Green Team Ashley Jazbec (11) and Anvi Banga (11), joined by Head of School Brian Yager and Upper School Head Butch Keller, announce that the cafeteria will no longer provide single-use plastic as a part of an initiative for environmental sustainability.
February 27, 2019
Head of School Brian Yager started the school meeting by congratulating students who performed in either the annual dance show or the recent Gala. He also praised the varsity boys soccer team for advancing to the Central Coast Sectional (CCS) semifinals. Next, he announced a series of accreditation visits, where educators from across California visit the Harker Upper School, from March 3 to March 6. Yager advised students to be polite and friendly if the educators visit classes and explained that they are members of either the California Association of Schools and Colleges or the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Assistant Head of School Jennifer Gargano organized the visits.
Following Mr. Yager’s presentation, Matthew Hajjar (12), Adhya Hokoste (11) and Grace Hajjar (11) gave the Eagle Update, reminding students of the football informational meeting and announcing the boys volleyball and girls lacrosse teams’ recent successes. They also encouraged students to attend the various home games this week.
Medical club members Mihir Dixit (11) and Arushi Madan (11) informed students of their upcoming speaker event with Dr. Al’ai Alvarez and Dr. My Phuong Mitarai. The speaker event occurred at 12:45 p.m. during long lunch Thursday.
Ashley Jazbec (11) and Anvi Banga (11) announced that the Upper School cafeteria would no longer provide any single-use plastic during lunchtime starting March 1.
Representatives from several language honor societies told students that this week would be their club week and that cultural snacks such as crepes would be sold during lunch and after school.
The Oeconomia club announced their own speaker event which would feature Randall Lewis, the director of economics at Netflix. The event took place in the auditorium at 12:45 p.m. during long lunch Thursday. Extra credit was offered to all economics students.
Science Department Chair Anita Chetty spoke about a research opportunity for students at the University of California, Santa Cruz, or SIP. She advised interested students to start seeking teacher recommendations, as their applications should be completed by the March 14 application deadline. Because Harker can only send a select few students to the internship, a committee of teachers will review each student’s application and will narrow the pool. The final deadline for the program, after committee review, is March 22.
Harker Career Connect Officers Roma Gandhi (11) and Aditi Ghalasi (11) encouraged students to attend their mentorship banquet on March 13. There, students will be paired with adults that are currently working in professions that they are interested in pursuing. Roma shared a story of how she learned valuable information and obtained informative experiences by attending the banquet in her freshman year.
Honors Directed Portfolio students announced that the last artwork, by Katrina Liu (12), would be put on display in the Shah gallery.
Lastly, Harker Spirit announced the respective themes for Spirit Week, the first week after break. The freshman theme is earth, the sophomore theme is fire, the junior theme is water and the senior theme is air.
