![“[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 community engaged in Halloween festivities like a pumpkin carving contest, haunted physics lab and costume contest on Oct. 26 and Oct. 31.
Pumpkin carving contest commences Halloween celebrations
Students and staff competed in a pumpkin carving contest for spirit points in front of Manzanita Hall during lunch on Thursday.
To prepare for the contest, Student Activities Board (SAB) representatives from all grades visited Spina Farms to select pumpkins for their class on Oct. 20. During the contest, each class showcased their unique pumpkin carving designs. Seniors crafted colorful flowers out of pumpkins, the juniors sculpted a pirate ship, the sophomores carved a jack-o-lantern devouring a smaller pumpkin and the frosh created a devilish rendition of Elmo.
Faculty judged the pumpkins based on creativity and execution. Seniors clinched a first place victory, earning 100 spirit points, juniors secured second place with 75 points, and sophomores and frosh finished third and fourth with 50 and 25 points respectively.
“I participated in the pumpkin carving contest because I wanted to make sure that my grade got involved in some of the spirit activities,” frosh SAB representative and pumpkin carving participant Samaara Patil said. “For the theme of our pumpkin, we wanted to carve something that everyone would know, so we carved an evil Elmo. It was chaotic but also a lot of fun.”
Spooky physics experiments
Upper school physics teacher Scott Pflaumer organized over 65 Halloween-themed science experiments for students in the Haunted Physics Lab during lunch on Thursday.
In one spooky experiment, students melded their faces with those of their peers by sitting on either sides of a dark screen. In another, they wrote messages with only a flashlight beam. The experiments were spread throughout the Nichols Atrium, upper school physics teacher Lisa Radice’s classroom and Pflaumer’s classroom, where the dimmed lights enhanced the eerie ambiance.
“There’s so [many] cool physics phenomena that in class, students don’t get to see,” Pflaumer said. “The overall idea is that a lot of these things on the surface are mysterious. Then, the students can figure out how it’s working, and that’s the interesting physics side of it. It’s a natural fit with Halloween because the science seems mysterious.”
Halloween costume and estimation jar contest
Harker Spirit Leadership Team (HSLT) hosted a Halloween costume contest and a candy jar estimation contest in front of Manzanita Hall on Tuesday.
The community donned a variety of costumes, from fairies with tutus and wings to bloodied Breaking Bad attire. The contest featured the categories of best overall, most creative, funniest, best duo and best group. To enter the contest, students and faculty registered with HSLT Community Secretary Sonia Yu (11).
“Hosting [the costume contest] creates spirit in our community, and it’s a fun day to come dressed up in different costumes,” Sonia said. “A lot of people did Men in Black this year, so that was really cool.”
Students also participated in the Halloween candy guessing contest in front of Manzanita Hall. The jar held an assortment of candies like Nerds and candy corn. Winners of both the costume contest and candy jar guessing contest will receive Starbucks gift cards.
Costume contest entrant Angelina Antony (10) dressed up as Maleficent as part of a Disney princesses and villains group costume. She recognizes the benefits of embracing the spooky season.
“I really enjoyed spending time with my friends planning our costumes,” Angelina said. “I especially love Halloween because I get to go trick-or-treating and watch horror movies which lets me feel like a little kid again and destress for a bit.”
![LALC Vice President of External Affairs Raeanne Li (11) explains the International Phonetic Alphabet to attendees. "We decided to have more fun topics this year instead of just talking about the same things every year so our older members can also [enjoy],” Raeanne said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/DSC_4627-1200x795.jpg)
