![“[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)
Talk around campus: Club showcase
August 19, 2021
In light of a new year, club officers are looking to take advantage of an in-person campus after adapting to an online setting during the 2020-21 school year. Some have used the summer to explore, improve or expand upon ideas for possible club activities and events. Five club officers introduce their respective clubs and explain goals and plans for the future.
Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA): Harker’s HOSA is one part of the international organization HOSA, which promotes career opportunities in the healthcare industry by hosting conferences and events throughout the school year.
“From a competitions aspect, if everything goes well in terms of COVID, we will have in-person conferences,” HOSA head of outreach and public relations Eileen Ma (11) said. “That would require a lot of behind-the-scenes planning because we did not do that last year.”
Signature Acapella: An online concert event showcasing acapella performances, Signature’s First Annual Signature Night of Acapella introduced new, current and alumni club members who sang a total of four songs.
“I think everyone is really just excited to be back in person,” Signature presidente Josh Field (12) said. “We will be working on a lot of skill-building for ensembles, like working on blend, working on balance and working on listening to each other.”
Student Diversity Coalition (SDC): With the goal of building a more inclusive community, the SDC looks towards initiating more conversation and confronting topics such as antisemitism, personal identity and the autistic spectrum.
“We want to have open meetings throughout the year and make sure we have events with the entire student body and also maybe with the faculty,” junior SDC representative Mir Bahri (11) said. “We have done some summer planning already where we’ve talked about how our goals include how we want to expand and develop the SDC.”
Applied Tech: Seeking to explore various paths within the interdisciplinary areas of technology, the Applied Tech club addresses fields such as biotechnology, financial technology and computer linguistics as a way to teach about how technology impacts different industries.
“One of our main goals is to have a speaker every single month,” Applied Tech secretary Trisha Variyar (11) said. “And then, not this coming year, but the next year, we might be looking into bringing industry professionals in and hosting some sort of in-person event over the weekend.”
Language and Linguistics Club (LALC): The LALC is where students can learn about the diversity and consistency of language, study for the North American Computational Linguistics Open Competition (NACLO) and be introduced to linguistics and how it is integrated with other fields.
“I am most looking forward to expanding the club even more and also collaborating with other Harker clubs to boost visibility and interest in linguistics,” LALC president Clarice Wang (12) said. “I know the in-person interactions such as lectures, round table discussions, and speaker events in [club advisor] Dr. [Shaun] Jahshan’s room will be a lot more engaging this year.”
