![“[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)
Dance students powered through fast-paced choreography under the instruction of NBA dancer and Harker class of 2017 alum LeAnn Reidenbach on Friday afternoon. The master class combined professional training, energy and community, and took place from 3:30 to 5 p.m.
Reidenbach is a UC Berkeley graduate and former Cal Dance Team captain. After dancing competitively throughout high school and college, she traveled internationally and participated in an NBA championship season.
The class opened with a cardio-focused warmup: jumping jacks, high knees, butt kickers and squats. From there, Reidenbach taught a hip-hop routine that was similar to a dance her team might perform on court during halftime, walking students through the choreography step-by-step.
For many dancers like sophomore member of Harker Dance Company Hannah Jiang, the master class provided a rare opportunity to explore a different style from what they typically perform in school.
“I really like the movement quality because we don’t get to learn that in HDC,” Hannah said. “The hip hop that we did this year was more of like a blend of other styles rather than this kind of hard hitting hip hop, and I’m really glad we got to do it.”
Reidenbach structured the class in short rounds of learning and review. Students learned about two eight counts at a time, first with counts and then with music, followed by a water break. After each break, they rotated positions in the room and continued building the routine.
Once the 30-second routine was complete, Reidenbach led students through the dance again, clarifying movement textures, level changes, and subtle timing adjustments. For the next half hour, students performed in small groups of four to five, sharing their work with other dancers and cheering each other on.
Senior Yasmin Sudersanam, captain of Harker Dance Company, found inspiration in Reidenbach’s unique journey — from dancing at Harker to performing at the professional level.
“I feel like she has such a valuable perspective,” Yasmin said. “Not only was the choreography super fun and not like anything we’ve really done before here at Harker, but getting to speak to her after about what it was like dancing at Harker and then at college and then the professional level was really insightful.”
The session concluded with a 15-minute Q&A, where Reidenbach answered questions about her dance journey, college experiences, and what it takes to work professionally. Reidenbach reflected on dancing through the pandemic, encouraging students to make the most of what they have now.
“Senior year at Cal, everything was virtual and we had no budget, so we asked alumni to teach free Zoom master classes just to keep dancing,” Reidenbach said. It’s really cool you all get this kind of exposure now. Normally these classes are expensive and harder to find once you’re an adult.”
As the class wrapped up, students gathered to thank Reidenbach and take pictures with her. The room echoed with applause and the buzz of students eager to practice what they had learned.
