![“[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)
Junior Sarah Mohammed named National Student Poet in Scholastic Art and Writing Awards
Provided by Sarah Mohammed
Junior Sarah Mohammed (11) was named National Student Poet in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. Her poetry told stories related to her own culture and background.
August 16, 2021
In late June, Sarah Mohammed (11) received the news that she was titled one of the five national student poets in the country after submitting to the 2021 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards poetry category.
Sarah’s collection of five poems, including one titled “Ode to Muslim Girl”, advanced past more than 19,000 other submissions and 40 semi-finalists to win the award. While she didn’t expect to receive any titles when entering, her stories about her culture and background elicited praise and recognition from the Scholastic judging panel.
“I still can’t really believe it,” Sarah said. “Writing those poems was a lot of lonely thinking while I tried to understand and process my feelings. So finally, receiving [the award] felt like something had opened, because I get to share my poetry with other people.”
For Sarah, being selected as one out of the five national student poets in the country represents the expansion of her poetry beyond herself. The messages she expresses in her poems about family and about being Muslim in a Hindu country initally helped her find her own identity, but as she was given more opportunities to interact with the world through her language, she realised that she was helping others connect to their heritage, too.
“For a long time, when I was young, I wanted to blend in and feel like any other white girl,” Sarah said. “I eventually came to terms with the idea that I do hold this identity, and I come from these ancestors and this lineage. I started feeling less alone, too, because I knew that I came from those people.”
Following this award, Sarah plans to continue to apply for Scholastic awards again next year, but she also wishes to simply continue to write whenever possible. She describes her writing process as expanding on a general thought she has, then letting her emotions guide her pencil. She begins by putting whatever notes or thoughts she has in a notebook, and then flushing them out on her laptop.
“Part of poetry for me is just listening and thinking deeply and just looking into the world. I will continue to keep writing because it feels so important to me and [to] my understanding of myself and my identity,” Sarah said.
