![“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)
Eagle updates hosts Charlotte Ludlow (12) and Pedro Castro (11) kicked off school meeting by announcing this week’s Athletes of the Week: seniors Topaz Lee and Brady Tse. They also commended cross country team members Axel Szolusha (11) and Maryanne Davies (12) for their recent personal best times.
Conservatory representatives Mindy Truong (12), Jessica Skylar Chen (11), Léa Kandl-Zhang (11), Aarya Vaidya (10), Anya Lu (10) and Shridhar Chaware (10) recognized senior Wendy Liu as the Conservatory Member of the month. They mentioned the choir’s upcoming trip to New York to compete in the New York Heritage Festival, as well as Orchestra and Jazz Band’s trip to Los Angeles to perform at Boyce Hall and watch a Los Angeles Philharmonic performance.
They also invited students to attend the spring musical, “Something Rotten,” from March 19-21, a boisterous meta-theatrical comedy set in 1595 that follows two brothers’ attempt to write a Shakespeare-style musical.
HarkerDev Admin Demi Zhang (11) introduced applications for HarkerDev’s first media design team and encouraged students to submit creative pieces, like app logos, hoodie designs and social media posts. Submissions close on May 1st.
WiSTEM Club Presidents Linda Zeng (12) and Anika Basu (11) announced this year’s Research Symposium theme, NextGen Medicine: Where Genomics, AI and Research Shape Tomorrow’s Healthcare. Marking the event’s 20th anniversary since its induction in 2006, the Symposium will take place on April 11, providing a place for student researchers, corporate exhibitors, and industry professionals to discuss current discoveries and innovations. Student volunteer signups will be taking place on March 18 during lunch in Ms. Chetty’s room.
Green Team officers Anoushka Madan (11) and Siddhartha Daswani (11) introduced the Plastic Film Drive in partnership with Ridwell, a subscription-based recycling service that deals with hard-to-recycle materials like plastic film. Opening with a video about the current state of plastic pollution, they asked students to turn in any plastic film they have, like plastic packaging.
Japanese National Honor Society president Aya Sugaya (12) and Art Club co-president Emma Li (12) invited artists to submit their work to their annual Comic and Manga Art Show. In addition to showcasing their work in a long-term exhibition in April or May, students have the opportunity to print their comics if they attend a mandatory information session with art teacher Joshua Martinez.
They also advertised their candle-making workshop, where students can sculpt a candle holder on a pottery wheel and choose their own candle scents and colors.
Startup World Cup leaders Robinson Xiang (12), Bazigh Tahirzad (11), Saahithi Koneru (11), Elynn Pang (10) and Riki Kawano (10) announced that the annual SWC Youth Qualifiers will be taking place at Harker on April 17th. The SWC gives student entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch their business ideas to real investors and receive critical feedback and potential sponsorships. Prizes also increased this year: the first place winner will earn two thousand dollars and the second place winner will earn five hundred dollars. Competitors who advance to the grand finale have the opportunity to win up to 1 million dollars.
LIFE Board representatives Kaitlyn Nelson (11) and Finley Ho (11) shared that Ms. Kelly Horan will lead a discussion titled “The Art of Napping,” which gives students advice on how to take intentional, well-timed naps on March 18 during long lunch. She will also give tips on how to get better sleep quality.
To close the meeting, ASB President Luke Wu (12) announced that preliminary voting for the next year’s ASB is taking place on Thursday, Mar. 19. Hot food was given to the frosh.
