![“[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)
Journalism students travel to Washington, D.C. to attend national journalism convention
November 23, 2019
Hannah Allam speaks to Harker Journalism about her experience covering the extremism beat for the National Public Radio (NPR). Allam took students on a tour of the NPR studio, where they were able to watch a Tiny Desk Concert.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Journalism students from TALON, Winged Post and Harker Aquila traveled to Washington, D.C. from Nov. 19 to 23 for the JEA/NSPA fall journalism convention, in which the Winged Post was named as a Pacemaker finalist, and four Individual Award finalists were named: one for social justice reporting, one for local climate change reporting and two for digital story of the year.
After landing on Tuesday evening, students split into three groups and visited the Newseum, African-American History Museum or explored D.C. They were joined by director of journalism Ellen Austin and chaperones Katy Rees, Eric Kallbrier and Pilar Aguero-Esparza.
The staff reconvened at the U.S. Capitol where they visited Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s office and interviewed hunger strikers who were advocating for climate change.
“We were able to interview congresspeople, and it was really fun to interview them and hear their diverse perspectives,” junior Aditya Singhvi, who is the Aquila sports editor, said. “I was able to apply all the journalistic skills I learned in a professional setting, which was an informative experience.”
On Thursday, the program visited the Capitol once again, attending House and Senate sessions and attempting to obtain press credentials for the impeachment inquiry hearing. In the afternoon, students visited both the National Public Radio (NPR) and Associated Press (AP) offices; NPR reporter Hannah Allam hosted a tour of the studio, and AP photo editor Jon Elswick answered questions regarding political and sports photography from students.
“It was a unique opportunity to learn about journalism and different kinds of journalism,” said Smrithi Sambamurthy (9). “I was also able to meet some of the upperclassmen on staff and bond with Harker journalism.”
Thursday night marked the official start of the convention, and students attended sessions and workshops at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park where they heard from speakers like American free speech activist Mary Beth Tinker and Emmy award-winning television journalist Mark Hyman.
Three groups from Harker journalism also hosted their own sessions about the Humans of Harker project, 2020 election coverage and longform features.
“I had a really good time. It was a lot of work, there was a lot of walking, but being able to see all the wonderful places we went to was really fantastic,” said Aguero-Esparza. “To be able to go to the Senate and the House and to be able to see the National Gallery was just wonderful.”
