![“[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)
Associated Student Body President Daniel Lin opened the school meeting on Feb. 22.
Make Our Schools Safe Treasurer Anoushka Chakravarty announced that Feb. 14 marked the sixth year since the Parkland shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. She read aloud a letter that Lori Alhadeff, one of the victim’s mothers, wrote to her deceased daughter one year after the shooting.
DECA officers Lauren Lin (11), Gabe Li (11), Kimi Yashar (10) and Eden Kelly (10) reminded students that February is DECA advocacy month and announced upcoming events. DECA planned a dodgeball tournament in Zhang Gym during lunch on Feb. 22, which was converted into a basketball game, and the winning team of juniors received Teaspoon drinks. They also notified students of an ice cream social which happened outside Manzanita Hall after school on Friday. DECA updated their bulletin board in Main Hall with a question asking students what their favorite DECA memory is, and respondents can join a raffle to win boba and a shoutout from DECA’s Instagram account.
Harker Conservatory representatives Luke Mehta (12), Shareen Chahal (12), Jason Shim (11), Iris Cai (11) and Sam Parupudi (11) invited everyone to attend the annual United Voices concert, which will feature choral groups from all Harker campuses on Friday. They also announced the Chamber Music concert, which consists of more than 15 student ensembles and took place on Feb. 23, and after school dance which started on Feb. 20. They then presented the Conservatory Student of the Month, Harshini Chaturvedula (12).
Charlotte Ludlow (10) announced the Athletes of the Month: varsity boys soccer captain Ryan Barth (12) and varsity girls soccer captain Anya Chauhan (12). She also recapped the varsity girls basketball team’s CCS quarterfinal game and encouraged students to attend the team’s CCS semifinal game against Half Moon Bay later that day.
Harker Spirit Leadership Team played a video edited by Shreeya Merchia (12) which featured Luke and Upper School Head Paul Barsky going on a road trip and revealing each class’ theme. The class of 2027’s theme is amusement parks, class of 2026’s the beach, class of 2025’s the mall and class of 2024’s concerts.
Yena Yu (10) from the Living with Intent, Focus and Enthusiasm board began the final section of the school meeting dedicated to a three-on-three basketball tournament. Student-comprised team Big Baller Brand battled it out with the faculty team Below the Rim for third place, and the Hummus Buckets played Rohit and His Two Minions for first place. Rohit and His Two Minions won the championship, and Below the Rim placed third. The preliminaries took place on Feb. 20 during long lunch.
Daniel dismissed the school meeting and reminded students that there would be snacks in Manzanita Hall.
