![“[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)
Student organization representatives attended the inaugural Leadership Summit where they listened to guest speakers and participated in interactive workshops on Saturday.
Director of Student Organizations Eric Kallbrier, who organized the event, began the day by leading participants through journaling exercises that emphasized the importance of a growth mindset.
“The attitude you bring as a leader will determine the outcome that you have,” Kallbrier said. “If you come to this with an open mind and open heart, and you’re willing to take risks in your reflection of your leadership and search for truth that maybe you didn’t realize before, you’re going to come up with something from this experience that will better shape you as a person moving forward.”
Leadership Summit attendees joined students at the concurrent Student Diversity Leadership Gathering, an event hosted by Harker and led by the diversity, equity and inclusion support organization the Glasgow Group, for the first half of the day. Founder Rodney Glasgow, gave the keynote address, where he guided students to consider the aftershocks of President Trump’s slew of executive orders, especially how they impact marginalized groups.
Working with students from other Bay Area high schools, participants then engaged in a series of exercises that challenged them to understand their unique identities and the adversities different groups face.
As part of recognizing the diversity in their community, students formed a circle and stepped forward if they identified with factors based on socioeconomic status, race, sexual orientation, and more. Afterwards, they played a game of tag designed to encourage empathy by having those who identified with certain groups chase their classmates from different backgrounds.
The Leadership Summit then split into student-led breakout groups focused on effectively building and maintaining student organizations. Seniors Robert Fields, Tiffany Gu and Alex Huang and juniors Ananya Pradhan, Sathvik Vemulapalli and Albert Yao each facilitated group discussions on topics like scheduling club meetings and gaining new members.
“I am grateful for this opportunity to share my knowledge and uplift our community through leading a session because I have a lot of experience working with other organizations,” Ananya said. “I also am always willing to learn so I was really excited to hear from different perspectives as well. I enjoyed listening to all of our amazing student leaders and the ways that they work together and collaborate.”
Students then had the opportunity to attend two of seven different faculty-led workshops, taught by Upper School Head Paul Barsky, Community Service Director Kerry Enzensperger, history teacher Carol Green, Class of 2025 dean Christopher Hurshman, Kallbrier, Director of Learning, Innovation and Design Diane Maine, Green Team advisor Senora Moss and history teacher Chuck Witschorik. The sessions covered topics from planning meeting agendas to improving event sustainability, and aimed to empower student leaders with skills to improve their clubs.
Ashley Del Alto (‘13), Anthony Meissner (‘19) and Andrew Skrobak (‘19) spoke about their experiences with leadership beyond high school in an alumni panel to close off the event. All three speakers had taken on active roles within the Harker community as sports team captains and club presidents, but they noted that it took years of work experience to truly understand the qualities of an effective leader.
Del Alto reflected on her experiences pursuing firefighting, highlighting the idea that leadership is not confined to a position or title but rather is a continuous commitment shared by all members of a community.
“Everyone has some sort of leadership in their life,” Del Alto said. “In the fire department, I’m very new there, I’ve only been there for about two and a half years, but we all bring something to the table. In high school, I’ve honed these leadership skills, and throughout your career you can really start to show that.”
