![“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)
Conservatory representatives Shruti Srinivasan (12), Arthur Wu (12), Yinan Zhou (12) and Jessica Skylar Chen (10) opened the school meeting on Tuesday in the Zhang Gymnasium. They screened a video introducing this year’s Student Directed Showcase plays: “A Small Wooden Horse,” “The Mysterious Case of the Mysterious Case,” “Bus Stop” and “Math.”
Senior Honor Council member Marcus Blenneman introduced social science teacher Carol Green, who gave a speech on civic engagement as part of the second day of Honor Week. Green encouraged youth to account for their actions and participate in their communities regardless of age or experience.
Civics students Rosemary Landivar (11), Jackson Powell (11), Ariel Zhang (11), Kayla Chen (10) and Camden Krause (10) notified students of the upcoming mock election on Oct. 8, where students will be able to vote for presidential candidates and for California propositions.
Student Diversity Coalition members Alexis Leo (10) and Dhanya Ramanan (10) announced registration for the Day of Understanding on Nov. 8. One hundred students from various schools will attend a full-day conference at the upper school focusing on media literacy, global awareness and civil discourse.
Harker Spirit Leadership Team members Leana Zhou (11), Omar Khan (10) and Ameera Ramazan (10) presented a video revealing the Homecoming theme, “Blizzard Blast.” In preparation for the Homecoming game next Saturday, HSLT taught the student body three new chants.
CareerConnect co-presidents Jia Jia Jiang (12) and Emily Mitnick (12) introduced upcoming CareerConnect events, including a visit to Fortinet, a leading cybersecurity company, a tour of the Giants stadium and a C-Sweets talk featuring speaker Howie Xie.
Business and entrepreneurship teacher Patrick Kelly and visual arts teacher Josh Martinez introduced a collaborative media workshop between the two departments. The workshop will provide students with specialized mentorship and resources to help with their creative goals and will take place in Nichols’s media art lab.
Associated Student Body president Sam Parupudi (12) closed the meeting by urging students to fill out Harker Aquila’s civic engagement survey.
