![“[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)
Photo Slideshow Sept. 8
September 9, 2023
Categories:
More to Discover
About the Contributors
Alena Suleiman, Aquila Co-Editor-in-Chief
Alena Suleiman (12) is the co-editor-in-chief of Harker Aquila, and this is her fourth year on staff. Alena wishes to interact with new people and work with all members of staff to craft engaging stories. Beyond journalism, she is an exhibited artist, humanities scholar and art museum enthusiast.
Alison Yang, Aquila Editor-in-Chief
Alison Yang (12) is an Editor-in-Chief of Harker Aquila, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, she looks forward to bonding with everyone on staff and encouraging creative concepts. In her free time, she enjoys eating shaved ice and hanging out with her cat, Schrodinger.
Alvira Agarwal, TALON Academics Editor
Alvira Agarwal (11) is an Academics editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is her third year on staff. This year, she looks forward to creating engaging works, both in articles and yearbook spreads. In her free time, she enjoys art and listening to pop music.
Angelina Burrows, TALON Sports Editor
Angelina Burrows (11) is the co-sports editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is her third year on staff. This year, Angelina hopes to build up confidence in her writing style and offer more ideas in group discussions. In her free time, she likes listening to music and sketching in her math notebook.
Ashley Mo, STEM Editor
Ashley Mo (11) is a STEM editor for Harker Aquila and the Winged Post, and this is her third year on staff. This year, Ashley hopes to further connect with the journalism team and create impactful STEM pieces and pages. In her free time, Ashley enjoys playing golf and spending time with her friends.
Brandon Zau, Photo Editor
Brandon Zau (12) is the photo editor for Harker Aquila, and this is his fourth year on staff. This year, Brandon hopes to celebrate his senior Class of 2024 peers and to tell the stories of the Harker community through meaningful photos and coverage. In his free time, Brandon enjoys taking candid pictures of his friends, listening to music and playing baseball.
Claire Yu, Multimedia Editor
Claire Yu (11) is a Multimedia editor for Harker Aquila, and this is her third year on staff. This year, she hopes to improve her writing, videography and photography. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music, reading and playing basketball.
Connie Xu, TALON PDA Manager
Connie Xu (11) is the PDA Manager for the TALON Yearbook, and this is her third year on staff. This year, she looks forward to connecting with her peers and taking more photos over the year. In her free time, she enjoys singing, dancing, reading, hanging out with family and friends, watching Youtube and hanging out with my cat and dog.
Desiree Luo, Aquila Co-Managing Editor
Desiree Luo (12) is a co-managing editor for Harker Aquila, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, Desiree hopes to interview new sources and sharpen her writing. In her free time, she enjoys watching black and white movies, following Bay Area sports teams and browsing bookshelves at Barnes and Noble .
Ella Yee, Aquila Co-Editor-in-Chief
Ella Yee (12) is the co-editor-in-chief of Harker Aquila, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, Ella hopes to continue bonding with the journalism staff and highlighting diverse perspectives within the local community. In her free time, she loves to dance, drink matcha lattes and watch Kdramas.
Emma Gao, Aquila Co-Managing Editor
Emma Gao (12) is a co-managing editor for Harker Aquila, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, she hopes to explore writing a variety of articles as well as interview more people around campus. In her free time, she enjoys going on long hikes, evening walks around her neighborhood and road trips along Highway 1.
Emma Milner, Aquila Editor-in-Chief
Emma Milner (12) is an Editor-in-Chief of Harker Aquila, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, Emma wishes to experiment with new story formats and grow closer to her fellow staff members. Outside of school, she plays badminton competitively, and in her free time, she likes to rewatch Suits and taste-test iced matcha lattes at new cafes.
Eva Cheng, Sports Editor
Eva Cheng (11) is a Sports editor for Harker Aquila and the Winged Post, and this is her second year on staff. This year, she hopes to inspire a greater enthusiasm for athletics in the Harker community through engaging stories with creative angles.
In her free time, she loves to play soccer, read and spend time with friends and family.
Gemma Chan, TALON Managing Editor
Gemma Chan (12) is a Managing editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, she looks forward to meeting the new reporters and taking lots of photos. In her free time, she enjoys playing basketball, binge watching tv shows and hanging out with friends.
Grant Yang, TALON Co-Academics Editor
Grant Yang (11) is the co-academics editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is his third year on staff. Grant is looking forward to designing his pages and taking photos at more events this year. By night, he partakes in recreational Wolfram Mathematica and insists that torque is a bivector.
Janam Chahal, Features Editor
Janam Chahal (11) is a Features editor for Harker Aquila and the Winged Post, and this is her third year on staff. This year, she looks forward to bonding with other staff members, interacting with new people and bringing diverse perspectives to the publications. In her free time, she loves to swim, spend time with friends and drink matcha with her sister.
Jeremy Peng, Copy Editor
Katelyn Zhao, Humans of Harker Co-Editor-in-Chief
Katelyn Zhao (12) is the co-editor-in-chief of Humans of Harker, and this is her fourth year on staff. Katelyn aims to honor each of the stories within the Harker community this year, especially those of the graduating Class of 2024. Outside of the newsroom, she enjoys biking, drinking coffee or matcha and reading recommended books from her friends.
Kevin Zhang, Aquila Co-Managing Editor
Kevin Zhang (12) is a co-managing editor for Harker Aquila, and this is his third year on staff. This year, Kevin hopes to expand the scope of sports content and collaborate with more staff members in journalism. In his free time, Kevin enjoys playing basketball, pursuing photography and drawing in pencil (he finds shading particularly satisfying).
Lindsey Tuckey, TALON Conservatory Editor
-Lindsey Tuckey (11) is the co-conservatory editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is her third year on staff. This year, she hopes to explore people's stories while improving her photography and writing skills. In her free time, she enjoys reading and learning about new scientific discoveries.
Margaret Cartee, Aquila Co-Managing Editor
Margaret Cartee 12) is a co-managing editor for Harker Aquila, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, Margaret wants to do more illustrations and meet all the new journalists in the program. In her free time, she likes sketching on paper, playing volleyball and sitting in chairs.
Mendy Mao, Features Editor
Mendy Mao (11) is a Features editor for Harker Aquila and the Winged Post, and this is her third year on staff. This year, Mendy wishes to improve her interviewing skills. In her free time, she likes to read short stories and play the violin.
Mirabelle Feng, TALON Student Life Editor
Mirabelle Feng (12) is a Student Life editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, she looks forward to creating unique designs for the yearbook and making more illustrations for Journalism as a whole. In her free time, she likes doing art and birdwatching and she may or may not have an OMORI addiction.
Ram Batchu, TALON Photo Editor
Ram Batchu (11) is a Photo editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is his third year on staff. This year, he looks forward to covering as many events as he can. In his free time, he enjoys watching tv and playing videogames.
Selina Xu, Aquila Co-Managing Editor
Selina Xu (12) is a co-managing editor for Harker Aquila, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, Selina hopes to hold engaging conversations and capture heartwarming moments on campus. In her free time, she enjoys reading, listening to music, and ingesting boba at an alarming rate.
Sidak Sanghari, Humans of Harker Editor-in-Chief
Sidak Sanghari (12) is an Editor-in-Chief of Humans of Harker, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, she looks forward to honor the Class of 2025 and work with the staff to write their stories. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family outdoors and trying new restaurants around the Bay.
Steven Jiang, TALON Conservatory Editor
Steven Jiang (12) is a Conservatory editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is his fourth year on staff. This year, he looks forward to enjoying more Conservatory performances and working with his fellow editors and reporters. In his free time, he likes playing piano and reading webnovels.
Tiffany Zhu, Sports Editor
Tiffany Zhu (11) is a Sports editor for Harker Aquila and the Winged Post, and this is her third year on staff. This year, she looks forward to bonding with the journalism team and reporting on exciting stories. In her free time, she enjoys baking and watching all genres of movies.
Vivian Chen, TALON Co-Student Life Editor
Vivian Chen (12) is the co-student life editor for the TALON Yearbook, and this is her third year on staff. This year, Vivian hopes to meet new people and connect with others through interviews about mutual topics of interest. When she has free time, some go-to activities include spending time with friends, listening to music, creating art and baking.
Yifan Li, TALON Editor-in-Chief
Yifan Li (12) is an Editor-in-Chief of the TALON Yearbook, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, she hopes to further explore creative and unique designs for the yearbook. In her free time, she enjoys watching videos of cats falling into the bath, drawing and testing her luck in gacha.
Young Min, Winged Post Managing Editor
Young Min (12) is a Managing editor for the Winged Post, and this is her fourth year on staff. This year, she looks forward to making amazing newspaper page layouts and getting to know the new reporters better. In her free time, she loves to hang out with her friends, make puzzles and bake.