![“[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)
Representative Anna Eshoo emphasizes student innovation during Civic Tech Club speaker event
Rep. Anna Eshoo of California’s 18th district speaks to Harker faculty and students for Civic Tech Club’s speaker event. Civic Tech Club president Deeya Viradia (10) asked Eshoo questions, and attendees put their own questions into the chat about cyberbullying and the role of technology in everyday lives.
November 3, 2020
Representative Anna Eshoo (D) of California’s 18th district emphasized the importance of innovation and delivered a message of hope to over 40 Harker faculty and students during Tuesday’s Civic Tech Club speaker event over Zoom.
Eshoo, who spoke about her experience spearheading the Democratic Innovation Agenda, believes in bringing science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education to students in kindergarten through 12th grade and continuing to reinforce innovation, describing herself as a “longtime supporter” of STEM.
“We have the wherewithal to grow this effort,” Eshoo said. “[STEM] needs to be integrated into the learning in elementary school, so that there is a love of learning, whether it’s science, whether it’s anything that’s related to technology and math, and I’m proud of what I’ve been able to get done.”
Eshoo helped establish the Congressional Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Academic Competition, also known as the “Congressional App Challenge.” The contest, which began back in 2014, was designed to engage high school students in STEM, and students can enter for a chance to have their app displayed in the U.S. Capitol Building as well as House.gov.
“One thing that specifically stood out to me was her app challenge,” Civic Tech Club president Deeya Viradia (10) said. “How she’s mobilizing high schoolers to come up with these creative solutions was really interesting.”
Near the end of the speaker event, Eshoo expressed her hopes for the future and her confidence in the younger generation.
“I know this is a tough time,” Eshoo said. “There’s virtual learning, we have to be masked, we can’t come together in groups. But keep the faith. I have such great faith in each one of you.”
Eshoo also virtually visited Harker in a speaker event with Harker Journalism in May. Civic Tech club, which focuses on how technology can be used to resolve issues in the government, decided to host a speaker event with Eshoo because of her political expertise.
“I was really impressed that a group of students [would] have the foresight to start organization like [Civic Tech Club] and reach out to a Congresswoman,” Civic Tech Club faculty advisor Jonathan Rim said.
Middle school history teacher Cyrus Merrill, who attended the event, encouraged many of his middle school students to attend.
“I thought it was interesting,” he said. “She was challenging folks to think about how can you try to merge civics with government.”
