![“[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)
A day of festivities and engagement: seniors, sophomores meet eagle buddies, juniors, frosh participate in LIFE assembly
Students play wall ball on the lower school campus during the sophomore eagle buddies event. “I think it benefits both sides tremendously,” Lower school Dean of Students Walid Fahmy said. “The third graders get to see what they’re going to look like, and what things are going to be like as they get older. When you’re a kid, everybody always wishes they were older. And then when you get to that point with the tenth graders, they come back and they’re like, ‘Oh my god, I miss this.’”
October 7, 2022
Smiles bloom on sophomore and seniors’ faces as they meet their Eagle Buddies for the first time. Their relationships would only strengthen as they proceed to engage in outdoor activities in the lower school campus.
The frosh and juniors attended LIFE sessions at the upper school campus while the sophomores and seniors met with their Eagle Buddies at the lower and upper school campuses, respectively, on Sept. 23.
The ninth graders participated in a Living with Intent, Focus and Enthusiasm (LIFE) session during lunch, where upper school speech and debate department chair Jenny Achten discussed the importance of sleep, using calendars to plan efficient schedules and the ineffectiveness of multitasking. Students then proceeded to play a Kahoot about the student handbook.
The juniors also attended a LIFE meeting in the Rothschild Performing Arts Center (RPAC) with speaker Dr. Mary Graham from Prevention Solutions, a company that aims to promote health by introducing ways to prevent substance abuse.
Dr. Graham talked about her experience with substance abuse, discussing factors that make a person more susceptible to an overuse of substances. She also described the connection between dopamine and substance use, and how there are alternatives to increase dopamine levels, such as exercise.
The sophomores and seniors met their Eagle Buddies for the first time in person on Friday, participating in various activities. Due to COVID-19 regulations, seniors were only able to meet their buddies through Zoom, so this event was a first-time in-person introduction. As for sophomores, this was their first year being paired up with the third graders. Eagle Buddies is a legacy program between the Harker upper school and lower school, which pairs third grade students with tenth graders, staying in the groups throughout high school. The program aims to establish connections between younger and older students and allow high schoolers to show their leadership and mentoring skills to the younger students.
“I’m feeling really excited,” Yinan Zhou (10) said. “I remember just hanging out with seniors when I was in elementary school, and that was really fun.”
The sophomores traveled to the lower school’s Bucknall campus, where they chose between activities ranging from arts and crafts to physical games like tag and soccer.
As sophomores interacted with their Eagle Buddies throughout the day, some were surprised at the depth of their conversations with their Eagle Buddies.
“Connecting with a younger kid, just seeing how they think, everything was really interesting and mind opening for me because their lives are very leisurely and cool,” Stefan Maxim (10) said. “Just being able to speak with them makes me remember how I was when I was younger.”
The seniors met their fifth grade Eagle Buddies, who traveled to the upper school campus, for lunch and activities. They engaged in pastimes such as karaoke, hula hooping, chaos tag and a variety of arts and crafts.
“It was really amazing to meet my eagle buddies for the first time,” Samvita Gautham (12) said. “I remembered the times when I was in the lower school and how I thought of the upperclassmen as really fun. I enjoyed now having the experience of being the senior and talking to my buddies.”
Lower school Dean of Students Walid Fahmy comments on his appreciation for the Eagle Buddy Program.
“I think it benefits both sides tremendously,” Fahmy said. “The third graders get to see what they’re going to look like, and what things are going to be like as they get older. When you’re a kid, everybody always wishes they were older. And then when you get to that point with the tenth graders, they come back and they’re like, ‘Oh my god, I miss this.’”
