![Setter Emma Lee (9) sets the ball to the middle during the match against Pinewood on Sept. 12. “[I’m looking forward to] getting more skilled, learning more about my position and also becoming better friends with all of my teammates, Emma said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DSC_4917-2-1200x795.jpg)
![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasnt been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but Ive had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. Theres so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesnt exist, you can build it yourself, Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“Animation just clicked in a way. I had been interested in art, but that felt different. [Animation] felt like it had something behind it, whereas previous things felt surface level. I wasnt making that crazy of things, but just the process of doing it was much more enjoyable, Carter Chadwick (22) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-16-at-9.44.08-AM-900x598.png)
![“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 its played such a major role in who Ive 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 Im [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)
![“[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)
![“Im 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 theres a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyones 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)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you arent going to get those championships if you arent 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)
![“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)
Upper school welcomes parents on Back to School Day
Intro to Journalism teacher Whitney Huang speaks to parents during sixth period in Main 5. Back to School Day was held on Saturday to give faculty the opportunity to introduce parents to their children’s classes this school year.
September 15, 2021
Upper school faculty, teachers and student leadership hosted the annual Back to School Day at the Saratoga campus on Saturday for parents to attend abbreviated classes and meet with teachers.
Student clubs and organizations spoke to parents from 9 a.m. to 9:40 a.m. in the Donor Plaza outside the Rothschild Performing Arts Center (RPAC), and ten-minute classes ran from 10:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Due to limited parking spaces on the Saratoga campus, parents were required to park at the Blackford campus. Shuttles ran between the two campuses for transportation.
Upper school economics teacher Dean Lizardo views Back to School Day as an opportunity to show parents what it’s like to be a student in his class.
“[On Back to School Day], I try to give the parents a taste of what it’s like to be in my classroom, so I do things like bellwork, and I ask parents questions,” Lizardo said. “I give them an idea of how I teach in class, and for the most part, [they] seem to really enjoy that. My ultimate goal is for them to be able to say ‘This is really cool—I would want to be in this class.’”
Reporting by Vishnu Kannan.
![Varun Thvar (10) writes a message in Anwen Hao (10)s yearbook after distribution on May 15. We work on [the yearbook] the whole year as a team, so seeing it finally come out and seeing people with the book in their hands being like ‘Oh hey, there’s you’ and ‘Oh hey, there’s me’ is super fulfilling,” said Angelina Hu (11), TALON Co-Editor-in-Chief for the 2023-24 school year.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/AZ1A1843-475x317.jpg)
