She walks in front of the panel of judges at the tournament, telling herself to be calm. Her nerves might overwhelm her, but Alycia Cary (12) stays focused on the speech she is about to give. Each word exudes passion and love about the topic. A smile begins to appear as she continues speaking.

Alycia joined the speech and debate program as a freshman. Though she started off in debate, former upper school speech teacher Marjorie Hazeltine, who now teaches at the middle school, convinced Alycia to switch to speech. She believes that the program has taught her not only communication skills, but also teamwork.

“Everyone says that speech and debate help with communication but I really think that it teaches the power of community. Whether you win or you lose, people are still there to celebrate with you,” said Alycia.

Though she started speech late, Alycia worked hard to improve her speaking skills. She took time to make sure each word was as persuasive as it could be, and put her heart into her speeches. Even her coach, Scott Odekirk, upper school speech and debate teacher, recognized the dedication she had.

“Alycia is passionate and competitive. She has a strong desire to succeed. She is also motivated to be a part of things greater than herself,” Odekirk said. “I think that she represents a classic Harker student, who is driven to achieve great things, but is made better by being around other great people. She is a fantastic teammate, leader, and role model for others.”

Other than speech and debate, Alycia does cross country, track and field, and soccer. While she plays only one team sport, soccer, she has learnt communication skills and the value of teamwork from all three sports.

“Two of the sports I play are known for being very individual. Part of what gets lost in racing for yourself is that you are actually racing for your team. You practice and race with your team and even in the worst moments during races, you are normally beside your teammate, who is encouraging you to go on,” Alycia said.

Understanding each other is important in a team, which Alycia finds to be true in all of her extracurricular activities.

“My passion isn’t exactly for any one of my extracurriculars, it is more of being able to communicate with people, understand what they’re going through, and bring them together to support a common goal. That manifests itself not only in speech and debate, but in the sports that I play,” Alycia said.

Alycia is always spirited, which her classmates and teammates are quick to see. Aneesha Kumar (12), a cross country runner and her friend, says that Alycia helps bring the team morale up.

“Alycia is definitely very outgoing, very supportive, and very dedicated to what she puts her mind to. She is like the cheerleader, always spirited and lifting others moods, even when they don’t want to put in effort,” Aneesha said.

Alycia’s presence is felt everywhere. Natasha Maniar (12) says that Alycia is confident, which people admire about her. Her caring nature defines her personality.

“Alycia exudes her confidence and presence wherever she is,” Natasha said. “Stepping into a room, she has this warmth about her personality that everyone sees and that’s what makes her the person she is.”

While she has confidence in herself, Alycia still has the rush of anxiety during tournaments. Before rounds, the team always gather in a circle for a quick, entertaining warm up routine to get rid of the nerves and bring the energy level up.

“There’s screaming, there’s laughing, rhymes that don’t make sense, and dance moves that belong back in the 80’s. The bigger the group gets, the crazier the warm up is,” said Alycia.

Communication and community define Alycia as a person, which she hopes will continue to do. She believes that the value of communicating with the people will be necessary to make a strong impact on the world.

“We focus a lot on the technology we make, but we don’t focus nearly as much on the people we are trying to impact. I think that getting to know people and getting to know their stories is something that should be done,” said Alycia. “I think that communication is important in being knowledgeable about how we are going to change the world and the people were impacting. That’s why I try to actively listen to people’s concerns and take into account other’s perspectives.”