School meeting recap 2/26/19

Members+of+Green+Team+Ashley+Jazbec+%2811%29+and+Anvi+Banga+%2811%29%2C+joined+by+Head+of+School+Brian+Yager+and+Upper+School+Head+Butch+Keller%2C+announce+that+the+cafeteria+will+no+longer+provide+single-use+plastic+as+a+part+of+an+initiative+for+environmental+sustainability.

Irina Malyugina

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.

by Eric Fang, News Editor

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.