![“[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)
Annual AMC 10 and 12 exams return to in-person testing
The classroom of upper school math teacher Gabriele Stahl. All upper school math teachers prepared their classrooms by separating desks before the AMC 10 and 12 exams on Nov. 10. The contests were administered in-person this year, though students still took the exams on their laptops.
November 27, 2021
More than 150 upper school students participated in the American Mathematics Competition (AMC) 10 exam and 12 A exam on Nov. 10 from 8 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. in Dobbins Hall.
The AMC 10 was only available for those in tenth grade and lower, and the AMC 12 A exam was available for all high schoolers.
Unlike previous years, students took the exam on their computers in Dobbins classrooms instead of on paper in Nichols Atrium. The competition was also held significantly earlier compared to past years — in November instead of the usual February — and according to Math Club advisor Dr. Anu Aiyer, more students participated this year than the usual count of around 120 students.
“Part of it is that we’re a STEM-oriented school, so we’re going to have students interested in math and that enjoy it,” Dr. Aiyer said. “The second aspect, I think, is that it was online, so it’s about ease of use. That might have attracted more people.”
Due to testing, the Wednesday schedule for Nov. 10 changed. Teachers held office hours from 9:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., and fifth period began at 9:35 a.m.
The AMC 10 and 12 B exams were consequently held on Nov. 16, although only active Math Club members were eligible to take the exams at Harker. More than 300,000 students from over 4,000 schools take part in AMC competitions annually.
Approximately, the top 2.5% of scorers on the AMC 10 and the top 5% of scorers on the AMC 12 will qualify to participate in the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME), which will be held on Feb. 8. The AIME can then qualify them for the United States of America Mathematics Olympiad (USAMO).
“I would say that it’s a good starting point for competitive math because you can get feedback as to where you stand and which type of problems you want to improve on,” Math Club co-president Riya Gupta (10) said. “It’s good, especially if you want to go further in competition math, because they have all types of problems in ranging difficulty.”
Audrey Cheng (9), who has prior experience with AMC exams and took the AMC 10 this year, enjoys the challenge of the competition, as well as the chance to hone her problem-solving skills both in practice and during the exam itself.
“I think it really does help you build your problem-solving skills, which are pretty useful in a lot of situations, actually,” Audrey said. “They can help in normal math class but also in things like physics.”
A previous version of this article omitted the grade level of Riya Gupta (10). This article has been updated on Nov. 28, 2021 to to reflect the correction of this error.
