![“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)
The ten ASB candidates for the 2026-27 school year participated in a town hall moderated by the Honor Council in the Zhang Gymnasium on Friday.
The candidates contending for positions are Ameera Ramzan (11) and Sophia Zhu (11) for President; Dyuthi Vallamsetty (10) and Amber Wang (10) for Secretary; Andrew Shin (11) and Avi Gupta (10) for Treasurer; and Cameron Jones (11) and Megha Unny (11) for Spirit Coordinator. Nicole Dean (11) is confirmed to be Vice President of next year’s ASB as the only candidate running for the position.
Each student first answered two questions specific to their respective positions. They then selected three out of eight broader questions about leadership, covering topics like meaningful changes they would make and what they learned from previous leadership experience. Candidates were not given the questions beforehand.
Megha expressed her thoughts on the new town hall system.
“This year was new because I had always watched the speeches before, and then I realized they weren’t doing speeches this year,” Megha said. “Part of me was a little sad, because it would have been cool to make a speech, but also it’s nice not having to prepare a lot in advance. I was a little scared at the beginning, but once we started talking, it was a lot of fun, and the questions were really good.”
Unlike previous years, the Honor Council oversaw this year’s ASB election process. Working with the Dean’s Office, they transitioned away from prepared speeches to a panel so that students could see a more genuine, unscripted side of candidates. The Dean’s Office will continue to manage ballot processes as they have in previous years.
“We wanted something more of a shorter format that requires the candidates to think on their feet,” senior Honor Council officer Suhana Bhandare said. “It’s a great new responsibility for the Honor Council to take on in collaboration with the Dean’s Office. We’re kind of a judicial branch, and even though the judicial branch doesn’t directly control elections, they’re responsible for the integrity and the honor in the system.”
Cameron highlighted both the challenges and advantages of the new format.
“I actually liked the way it was run better than before,” Cameron said. “The panel style actually shows how people feel and what they think. Speeches get so refined and fixed, to the point where they’re almost perfect. In years prior, especially for Spirit Coordinator, the speeches morphed away from the actual quality of someone’s campaign, and people were looking at who could provide the biggest spectacle.”
This year, the Honor Council set a new rule in place prohibiting students from explicitly endorsing candidates on social media, like commenting “Vote for ___,” to reduce bias in voting. Before the town hall began, history and social science teacher Carol Green explained implicit bias and its impacts on voter habits.
“Research shows that even people who think they were undecided about an election have actually already developed a preference weeks before they get their ballots,” Green said in her speech. “Instead of seeking out more information, we tend to rationalize it. And we rationalize that by telling ourselves a story about why we don’t like someone or why we do like a candidate. I want to remind you that today is not just about listening. It is about checking yourself.”
Voting for the 2026-27 ASB Election took place on Tuesday during advisory via email ballot.
