![“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)
As Emily Bryan (’26) reaches the finish line, the cross country team cheers along the sidelines. They rush up to her to congratulate her, supporting her after a difficult race. As she checks the timer, Emily realizes that she finished the race in under 20 minutes, breaking her own personal best. Surrounded by her teammates, Emily is overcome with a sense of pride.
Since she was a young child, Emily has been running alongside her mom as a part of her mom’s running group, working her way up from being pushed in a stroller to eventually running with the group. With her lifelong interest in running, she joined the cross country team in middle school and continued through high school.
“I saw how important it was for [my mom’s] community because it created a great group of people that supported each other and helped work through their problems together,” Emily said. “A lot of people think cross country and running in general is a very individual sport, but that’s completely not true because having your teammates motivates you to keep running and to do well.”
Although Emily has run cross country since middle school, she found the transition to a high school team difficult. With both a new coach and new athletes, the team lacked a clear dynamic and strong bond. Recognizing how important a close team bond is to keeping the team motivated, Emily prioritized helping underclassmen feel welcome on the team, growing into a key leader on the team.
“Originally when I started, I didn’t know what I was doing,” Emily said. “As you get older and as you see other kids coming in, I could see how important it was to have a leader to set the team dynamic and to help people stay on the team and stay motivated and bond. I’ve become more of a leader now, and I’ve been able to reach out to newer members and other people on the team.”
For Emily, the support of her team is the most important aspect. Emily’s favorite memories from running cross country are the team meals after meets that helped her grow closer with her teammates.
“When you do team sports, you meet a lot of people you wouldn’t have otherwise met,” Emily said. “You interact with people you wouldn’t normally gravitate towards, and you really bond with them in that way.”
Close friend Sophia Ou (’26) met Emily on the cross country team in eighth grade and the two were teammates for three years. Her reliability and commitment to creating a close team bond stood out to Sophia and continues to influence their friendship.
“She’s a great team leader,” Sophia said. “When I was on the cross country team, she was always someone that you could approach as an upperclassman. Tons of her underclassmen can confide in her and they all trust her a lot and respect her as a team leader. She also gives great advice and she’s just a very reliable and dependable person.”
Close friend Natalie Barth (’26) grew up with Emily. From going to camp together to eventually attending Harker together, they have been inseparable. Natalie admires Emily’s perseverance.
“She’s really ambitious and she’s very mature, but at the same time very humorous,” Natalie said. “She has a good balance between knowing when to lock in and be formal versus when to be a little goofy.”
Having taught Emily in both English 3: A Survey of American Literature and English 4: Short Fiction, English teacher Lizzy Schimenti commends Emily’s curiosity. Her engagement with the texts helped set an example for the rest of the class.
“I thought she was a bright young woman who had a lot of interesting things to say about the text,” Schimenti said. “She was super responsible, genuinely curious about what we were studying, and had a lifelong learner approach to learning. She’s very respectful, responsible, and a great community member.”
In the classroom, on the cross country team, and with her friends, Emily’s supportive personality and perseverance shine. Wherever she goes, she brings her hardworking diligence and enthusiasm.
“Cross country has made me more resilient mentally because it’s such a mental sport,” Emily said. “It’s definitely made me more willing to reach out to people. Physically, there’s a real sense of accomplishment you get after you do a really hard run or a hard workout or a race. That’s really unique. It’s caused me to seek out more of those opportunities where I do something difficult and then feel that sense of achievement.”
