![“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)
Afrofuturism scholar and historian Walter Greason met with a journalism class for a conversation about his career, creative work and perspectives on contemporary society on Friday.
Dr. Greason explained his professional journey, from designing modern Wakanda for Marvel between 2003 and 2007 to preserving Black historical sites and communities. Responding to student questions, he highlighted the educational value of his work across comics and video games.
“There’s a depth to the process of combining art and writing that educators and scholars did not appreciate,” Dr. Greason said. “Historians in particular are very committed to the formal written word in a way that they don’t want to study music, imagery or pop culture. But when you combine multiple media with critical academic work, when you can represent it with both sound and image, you learn it better and it’s more easily understandable.”
Students also discussed with Dr. Greason the broader role of journalism and media in society. Dr. Greason emphasized the limitations of traditional broadcast news and the importance of verifiable eyewitness accounts often found on social media. He encouraged students to strengthen verification skills and technological literacy.
“It was interesting to hear him talk about the value of getting news from social media instead of traditional news sources because we don’t usually hear people saying that,” journalism student Janam Chahal (12) said. “He gave a lot of good tips on how to stay well-informed and avoid misinformation in this day and age.”
Dr. Greason advised on personal and professional development, drawing on his own journey from high school to his current work. He described beginning with a foundation in computer science before discovering an interest in history in high school and merging both into a unique interdisciplinary career. He advised students to find their own professional niches by identifying and combining unique fields.
“I liked that he didn’t frame his interests as this perfect path that he had planned for his whole life,” journalism student William Jiang (11) said. “I’m into both science and humanities, and hearing how he found success in combining both made me feel more comfortable about potentially exploring that overlap in my future instead of trying to force myself into one category.”
Dr. Greason served as the keynote speaker for Harker’s Martin Luther King Jr. Evening Celebration on Friday evening. He also visited middle and lower school classes throughout the week.
