![“[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)
Presidents of WiSTEM Linda Zeng (12) and Anika Basu (11) began the school meeting by discussing the club’s upcoming initiatives for the school year, including Harker Day activities, Research Symposium and their first meeting on Thursday, Sept. 18.
B&E teachers Dean Lizardo, Matt McCorkle and Michael Acheatel and senior Robinson Xiang invited students to participate in the Venture Investment Initiative, which offers three hands-on programs: Harker Venture Pool, the Meta Scholars program and the Incubator program.
Meta scholars will be given the opportunity to be mentored under experienced alumni and founders, or do independent research on economic topics. Students in the Incubator program will receive funding to launch their small business and pitch their ideas at events like the Startup World Cup. The first Strategic Gathering for the Venture Investment Initiative will take place on Sept. 19.
ASB Community Service Committee members Lucas Chen (12), Luke Wu (12), Chelsea Xie (11) and Ameya Choudhary (10) and Green Team officers Anoushka Madan (11) and Siddhartha Daswani (11) introduced the first out of five Milk Tea Mondays that will be hosted throughout the school year.
The event will take place on the last Monday of September, where the first 40 students who signed up through the grade level forms posted on Schoology will receive a drink of their choice after throwing a piece of trash in the correct bin. In the future, ASB and Green Team hope to further tie Milk Tea Mondays with Green Team initiatives.
LatinX Affinity Group officers Alana Brill (12), Sofia Vasquez-Perez (12) and Natalie Warmdahl (11) spoke about the importance of Hispanic Heritage Month and honoring all LatinX countries, including Brazil and other non-Spanish speaking countries. They also mentioned Mexico’s vibrant culture and honoring the hard work of the LatinX in the community.
After their speech, students from various LatinX countries participated in a flag ceremony, holding up their flags while audience members applauded. Finally, the officers closed off with a traditional folklórico dance.
ASB President Luke Wu closed the meeting by announcing hot food priority for seniors.
