The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

“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.

Humans of Harker: Neymika Jain finds balance in life

by Anvi Banga, Reporter June 6, 2017

Neymika Jain (12) has spent years diving into STEM but has a unique way to ward off excess stress. She bullet journals and writes slant poetry, which helps her understand herself more. “I think one...

“A lot of the time, when I’m out at nail salons, nailers ask me if I‘m Vietnamese. I say yes, but they say that I don’t speak the language and have never been back to Vietnamese, so am I really? I always felt disconnected, like I would be Vietnamese-American but never Vietnamese. When I went to Vietnam for the first time, it brought me closer to my culture. I realized I shouldn’t view myself as a different. I have to see Vietnamese-American and Vietnamese as one and the same, Haley Tran (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Haley Tran values her cultural identity

by Vijay Bharadwaj, Opinion Editor June 2, 2017

Haley Tran (12) loves making study guides. She often shares these detailed notes with her peers to help them to prepare for tests. But her motivations in creating and sharing these go deeper and beyond...

“One time, I was hiking up this giant off-trail path, and this is going to make me sound like a complete hippy, but what I was thinking at the moment was that every single tree out there must have had some sort of backstory. Even when I was walking to Shah, there was this tree right next to the building, and I was like, ‘Maybe this tree had a lot of other tree friends, but then this building came up and they had to get cut down.’ That made me pretty sad. So, when I was coming up with backstories for trees, it reminded me of my childlike innocence of playing pretend or playing with my stuffed animals because I thought my imagination would never run as wild as it once did. But, this experience made me feel happy because it’s something that I’ve lost, and I feel like I gained some of it back, Aashish Jain (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Aashish Jain finds inspiration in painting through watching Bob Ross videos

by Alex Youn, TALON Editor-in-Chief June 1, 2017

Throw away the extravagant tools and expensive classes. Aashish Jain (12) only needed a few relatively cheap supplies, a wireless connection and his own imagination to develop his interest in painting. During...

“For me, robotics has always been a great way to learn about how to build things and how things work. Honestly, that is the reason why I love robotics. When you see everything working, you look at it and say I helped make this happen, which is really really gratifying, Andrew Tierno (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Andrew Tierno reflects on his passion for robotics

by Eric Fang, Reporter May 31, 2017

After joining the Harker's Robotics Club in freshman year, Andrew Tierno's  ('17) passion for robotics has motivated him to further his cooperation and innovation skills Andrew joined the robotics...

“A lot of being a choreographer is about digging deep, understanding, and finding out which event leads to the next, which is basically what science is. You would take a circuit and break it apart to understand each of the components, and you would do that to a song,” Sneha Bhetanabhotla (‘17) said.

Humans of Harker: Sneha Bhetanabhotla learns to connect robotics and dance

by Anika Rajamani, Reporter May 30, 2017

As soon as Sneha Bhetanabhotla (‘17) turned five, she received a Circuits 101 kit and ever since then, she has been interested in the sciences. Living in a house full of scientists, Sneha has been motivated...

“If I were to become a politician, I wouldn’t want to be someone who bowed under the pressure of the president or someone who is above me, I would want to be someone who stood up for what I thought was right and what I thought was constitutional, even if it got me fired or it caused me to lose power or money, Molly Wancewicz (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Molly Wancewicz speaks out through debate

by Ashley Jiang, Photo Editor May 25, 2017

Always with a bright, joyous smile on her face, Molly Wancewicz (12) is not afraid to speak out. Standing confidently in front of the podium, she prepares to counteract the argument presented by her opponent. As...

“[Photography] opened my eyes to things that don’t exist except for in that one-second exposure that your eyes can’t capture, writing can’t capture and even video can’t capture. I think it’s an obsession with the world. I’d look outside, and think, ‘These colors are beautiful,’ even though I really like working in black and white. It’s this overall obsession but the way I learn about myself. The camera, when it’s in my hand, teaches me about who I am, and the things that I don’t really know. It’s really taught me how to love, not just the people I’m with, but the overall world, Alex Mo (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Alex Mo uses photography to inform his worldly and personal perspectives

by Alex Youn, TALON Editor-in-Chief May 24, 2017

Look. Blink. Click. For Alex Mo (12), his two experiences of viewing a particular person or an object through both his optical lens and his camera lens have virtually meshed and provoked one of his...

“[I care about] diversity of opinion. Some people think you have to care about one thing only, and you cant care about other things, but I just like Harker because everyone has different perspectives and different ideas. If everyone cared about for example saving the environment or being really good at one sport, then the world wouldnt function, Colt McNealy (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Colt McNealy finds a passion for golf

by Maya Kumar, Winged Post Features Editor May 13, 2017

When Colt McNealy (12) has a free day, you can probably find him at the golf course, where he spent upwards of nine hours daily during winter break. Even during hockey season, no matter how busy he is,...

“What motivates me? Wanting to become a better person and a better individual as a whole, because at the end of the day, anything you do, youre doing it for yourself, and I feel that if it’s not making you better, then it’s kind of like moot at that point, Varun Haltore (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Varun Haltore finds new passions in high school

by Anya Weaver, Reporter May 12, 2017

While most enjoy listening to upbeat music before a sports game, Varun Haltore (12) prepares for his games by dressing up and listening to relaxing music. “I know a lot of guys like to listen to pumped...

“On my wrists, I have sayings on it, Ill have my favorite quote, which is actually my senior quote on it, and on the left wrist, Ill have [the names of] everyone whos injured on my team, their numbers on my wrists, so in a way, Im playing for them, Saketh Gurram (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Saketh Gurram develops a passion for football

by Zachary Hoffman, Multimedia Editor May 10, 2017

Most days, Saketh Gurram (12) is itching to get on the field and play football. However, it was not always this way. Freshman year, green to the Harker football team, Saketh was not the seasoned player...

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