![“[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 3/2/2020: Soccer CCS champions, kissing pigs and solving the squirrel problem
The varsity boys soccer team applauds after senior Andrew Cheplansky finishes speaking about the team’s accomplishments this season. The boys won against Saint Francis on Saturday, winning their first CCS championship.
March 2, 2020
Avi Gulati (12) started off the meeting yesterday by announcing that the sandwich bar is being shut down due to students being unable to clean up after themselves.
Head of upper school Butch Keller encouraged students to not let academic counselor Lori Kohan’s absence deter them from seeing a counselor.
Grace Hajjar (12), Meona Khetrapal (11) and Calais Poirson (11) gave the Eagle Update. Boys volleyball went 4-0 last weekend and won the Washington High tournament championship. Girls lacrosse started their season with a loss to Willow Glen and will be playing at Burlingame High on Thursday. Varsity boys golf won a one stroke victory over Valley Christian. Boys tennis started their season with 7-0 wins over King’s Academy and Nueva. Boys baseball started their season with two wins, and they will travel to Woodside on Tuesday. Boys varsity soccer won against Saint Francis on Saturday, winning their first CCS championship.
FEM and Youth Activism Club has their club week this week, and they will be selling treats throughout the week.
Tasha Moorjani (12) and Meilin Yen (11) encouraged students in Bel Canto or involved in an outside choir to audition for Honor Choir.
Key Club announced a SomiSomi fundraiser on March 9 from 3 to 8 p.m. They also announced their event LollaPIGooza, with a Kiss a Pig Raffle. There will also be a petting zoo.
Saloni Shah (11), Finn Frankis (12) and Tiffany Chang (9) from Harker’s United States Association of Young Physicists’ Tournaments (USAYPT) spoke about their experience participating in a conference in New Hampshire.
Medical Club announced a speaker event that took place yesterday during long lunch from 12:45 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., when Stanford endocrine surgeon Carolyn Seib came to speak. They also announced a field trip to Intuitive Surgical on March 11.
Mock primary elections hosted by AP Government students took place during lunch yesterday in Shah room 402. Members of all classes were welcome to vote. Official California voting guides were available.
Assistant head of upper school Greg Lawson announced that a Shelter in Place drill would be taking place sometime today.
Lawson also reminded students and faculty to avoid feeding the squirrels and to avoid throwing away leftover food in trash cans outside.
“We got a pretty robust tree squirrel population on campus,” Lawson said. “So we [are] asking for your help today because they’re getting more aggressive. [You] can’t treat them like your pet cat at home.”
Avi ended the meeting by announcing a high of 71 and a low of 49 degrees Fahrenheit.
