![“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)
Students and parents gathered for Harker’s annual Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) screening event, which provided free, non-invasive heart testing in the Zhang Athletic Center on Saturday.
Harker collaborated with Kyle J. Taylor Foundation to organize this event. Participants completed a health history questionnaire before undergoing an electrocardiogram to measure the heart’s electrical activity, which helped screen for potential heart conditions that could increase the risk of sudden cardiac arrest. In addition to screening, the event also focused on emergency preparedness, offering cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training that taught students how to respond to a sudden cardiac arrest.
SCA is a condition that affects thousands of youths each year. According to an email sent out by athletic director Dan Molin, studies show that one in 300 youths has an undetected heart condition.
Eighth-grader Vedant Chandra, who participates in multiple sports, attended the event to ensure he could safely continue participating in athletics and to check for any underlying health conditions.
“I’ve done it for the past two years, I know how it goes,” Vedant said. “A fun part about it is the CPR training. It’s a fun way to learn about what to do if there’s an emergency situation. Because this event makes students more aware of circumstances that could happen, it makes them more aware and cautious.”
Assistant Head of School and Student Affairs Ken Allen, who helped to oversee the event, explained how the initiative grew out of a large effort by administrators and athletic staff to take a more proactive approach to student health and well-being.
“The motivation really came from a shared commitment to student health and safety,” Allen said.“A few years ago, the athletic directors, Theresa Smith, Dan Molin, Brighid Wood, Alfredo Alves and I started talking about ways we could be more proactive and what more we could do to support our students. From there, it felt like a natural step to bring this opportunity to Harker.”
Trained medical professionals who volunteer with the Kyle J. Taylor Foundation, an organization that aims to raise awareness about SCA, conducted the screenings. Jennifer Sarmento, executive director and founder of the Kyle J. Taylor Foundation, noted her motivation to create the foundation after the sudden loss of her son and a desire to raise awareness about undetected heart conditions in youth.
“Our main mission is to bring awareness to cardiac arrest in youth because before my family lost our son Kyle, we had no idea that this was something that could happen to seemingly healthy kids,” Sarmento said. “We try to hit the prevention and response piece. It’s important to do SCAs for kids because they aren’t normally done on kids as part of their yearly physicals or their pre-participation physicals.”
By offering preventative health screenings alongside academic and athletic programs, the event reflects Harker’s broader mission of supporting student success beyond the classroom.
“It really fits with how we think about supporting the whole student at Harker,” Allen said. “Student health and well-being go beyond academics and athletics, and we’re always trying to be thoughtful and proactive in how we care for students.”
