![“I wasn't discouraged by some of the obstacles we faced. I learned a lot from the leadership. I found that different people need different ways of receiving feedback — you can't [just] tell them to do something and expect the best. [Some] people needed more incentive. A large part of my role was to figure out what worked for everyone and to figure out how to lead all these separate individuals as a team,” Suhana Bhandare (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SuhanaBhandare_JasmineHansra-1-1200x798.jpg)
![“This is actually from Randy Pausch Randy P. Brick: ‘Walls are there for a reason. You have to show how much you want to overcome them.’ You have to show how much you want something. That's what I've always been able to do with tennis, Link Crew and getting that internship [with Kushy Baby]. It’s important pushing through that — getting around that brick wall, climbing over it or clawing through it,” Yash Sachdeva (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/YashSachdeva_RamBatchu-copy-1200x1002.jpg)
![“[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)
The upper school celebrated former Harker president Howard Nichols’ birthday through the annual tradition of serving chocolate chip cookies to students and faculty during lunch on Tuesday.
In a Schoology post that morning, Head of Upper School Paul Barsky highlighted the significant role Nichols played in the school’s history. During lunch, Barsky and Administrative Assistant to Upper School Division Head Michelle Martinez handed out cookies to those passing by outside Manzanita.
Nichols served as Harker’s president from 1992 until his retirement in 2005 and was known for keeping a jar full of chocolate chip cookies in his office for anyone who wished to talk to him. He passed away in 2008. According to upper school biology teacher Jeff Sutton, Nichols was invested in students’ well-being in addition to being methodical and efficient in his approach to running the school.
“Students would always go and pick up cookies — they used to be in [Nichols’] office,” Sutton said. “And so he had to have that exchange with students. They would come in and get a cookie, and he would say hi, at least. He was definitely student-oriented. He wanted to know how the students were doing, what was going on.”
The tradition is not only celebrated at the upper school campus but also at the lower and middle schools. For Sophie Chen (9), who has been attending Harker since the third grade, the distribution of cookies has served as an annual reminder to be grateful.
“I think the tradition is a great way to commemorate Mr. Nichols and his contributions to the school,” Sophie said. “Even though there are cookies available in the Aux Gym every day, cookies in honor of someone else are undoubtedly more special. I hope Harker continues this tradition for years to come.”
Alongside his wife, Diana Nichols, Nichols led the initiative to create and develop Harker’s upper school, which accepted its first students in 1998. Upper school history and social science teacher Donna Gilbert noted that Nichols’ contributions to the upper school reached beyond developing its academic curriculum.
“The number one thing I loved about Harker when I came here is the students were respectful and kind to each other and invested in learning, and I think that came from the Nichols,” Gilbert said. “I think they emanated that, and that was one of their greatest legacies.”
