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

“In my time as a high school student, I have gone out and tried as many things as possible. I would call 13 year old Arben and tell him to work a little harder and put a little more time into academics, but I don’t regret having all the fun Ive had at all, Arben Gutierrez-Bujari (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Arben Gutierrez-Bujari strives to lead a balanced life

by Adrian Chu, Opinion Editor January 22, 2017

Arben Gutierrez-Bujari (12) is a fierce athletic competitor but makes sure to enjoy and appreciate life. “It’s important to do what needs to be done,” Arben said. “Academics always comes first;...

“When you read your own writing, it isnt just words and grammar that you absorb: its a powerful tool for mental recall. You remember not only the words but your state of mind when you wrote them, and what possessed you to arrange them in one way and not another. Some of my middle school works have actually made me cringe and say, ‘What were you thinking when you thought this would be good?’ and then Im quiet, because I know the answer. Incidentally, if I ever read the phrase ‘flashing sapphire eyes of icy blue’ again, Ill throw up in my mouth a little, Lavinia Ding (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Lavinia Ding writes from her imagination

by Kevin Huang, TALON People Editor January 21, 2017

From a young age, Lavinia Ding has used writing as an outlet for her thoughts and ideas. She uses her creativity and imagination to fabricate entire worlds, characters and stories that fascinate her. “I...

 “Languages aren’t just this foreign concept; they’re another way of talking to people. I like the idea of the unknown, and I want to make it so that that unknown culture is known to me. I’m attracted to that mystery. I want to find it; I want to uncover it. If there was no unknown, I think I would just be bored. It excites me, and I want to discover what’s behind it, Megan Swanson (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Megan Swanson pursues multiple languages

by Julia Huang, Organizations Editor January 20, 2017

Around 5 a.m. in an airport in Washington, D.C., a stranger started speaking to Megan Swanson (12) in Chinese. The man appeared to be requesting to borrow her phone, and she replied, in his language, that...

“I don’t feel the guard position is all that it’s made out to be. I’ve always wanted to draw contact and be more involved in the battle over the boards. When someone tries to cross a defender up, they usually aren’t trying to get anywhere; they’re just dancing in front of the defender, looking for a mention in the highlight reel. I like getting physical with getting rebounds and it’s something that a player can constantly be doing to help his team. There’s only one basketball to shoot on the court, but every shot that goes up is a potential rebound to be collected, Justin Jia (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Justin Jia distinguishes himself in basketball

by Alex Wang, Sports Editor January 19, 2017

Everyone wants to be a guard, to be the person to shoot threes and break ankles all day. The guards want to be guards. The small forwards want to be guards. The power forwards want to be guards. The centers...

 “My philosophy is that I could die penniless and I wouldn’t care—I wouldn’t care what diploma I graduated with or what percentile my ranking was in my class. I’d rather be remembered for something good, Arthi Iyer (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Arthi Iyer strives to make an impact

by Raveena Kapatkar, Editor-in-Chief January 18, 2017

For Arthi Iyer (12), helping others serves as the driving force for many of her actions. From volunteering with the Humane Society for the past four years to tutoring students at Harker or with Kumon,...

“For me, acting is just something that I love to do, and the feeling when you’re on stage and you’re performing, it’s really unparalleled. And also, I think it’s the entire process that makes me come back for more. You know, the rehearsal process, character development, all of these things that kind of come together to form the final product that the audience doesn’t really see, but the actors spend so long making into their actual character, Chetana Kalidindi (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Chetana Kalidindi appreciates the process of performing

by Delaney Logue, Reporter January 17, 2017

Although her family focused on sports, Chetana gravitated towards performing arts ever since elementary school. “My sister was really heavily into volleyball,” she said. “My dad played volleyball,...

“[My dad] says life is a dot. Everyone is a small speck on the earth, so you have to make your dot as prominent as possible. You have to do everything you can to impact others and yourself while you live, Kendall Ka (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Kendall Ka expresses herself through film

by Megan Cardosi, TALON Sports Editor January 16, 2017

As a filmmaker and a storyteller, Kendall Ka (12) finds herself constantly looking into the future. “I can envision where I want to be in five years,” Kendall said. “I picture myself winning awards...

“One thing that is important to me when I do something is to actually be able to see if it gets results, so I like starting from nothing and then over time seeing the robot get built until the finished product. We actually keep a time-lapse of it, which is something I enjoy watching when its done,” Karthik Sundaram (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Karthik Sundaram dedicates time in the robotics lab

by Nerine Uyanik, Reporter January 15, 2017

Joining robotics opened many doors for Karthik Sundaram (12). It aided him in his path towards discovering his passion, making new friends and eventually finding volunteer work in a similar field. Karthik...

“[Acting gives you] a chance to be not who you are. When you are a character, no one is looking at you the way they do in real life,” she said. “It’s cool to have an effect on the audience and to grow from that, Mia Giammona (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Mia Giammona develops confidence through performing arts

by Natasha Maniar, Reporter January 14, 2017

Mia Giammona (12) lives by the motto “Fortune favors the bold,” and believes that her self-confident nature has benefitted her performing arts career and mentoring activities as well as her willingness...

Surrounding myself with people who have such great leadership skills, such great confidence, people who are so smart, made me want to work hard. They all inspired me to grow. And I did grow. That person who sits in the corner—that’s not who I am anymore, Ankita Uppugunduri (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Ankita Uppugunduri gains confidence through business

by Prameela Kottapalli, Winged Post Asst. Features Editor January 13, 2017

Ankita Uppugunduri (12) entered high school as a reserved freshman, uncertain of what path she would pursue. But when she met the DECA officers—student leaders who exuded confidence and supported their...

“Using programming, I can tell [computers] what to do with their ridiculous brain power. Part of why I enjoy computer science is because of those moments where I go, ‘Oh man, I figured out the answer!’ whenever I solve whatever problem I’ve been trying to solve. There’s that little epiphany I get, and I think that’s the best feeling,” James He (12) said.

Humans of Harker: James He problem-solves using computer science

by Helen Yang, Reporter January 12, 2017

For James He (12), computer science is a passion, a hobby, and a way to connect with others. “There’s that atmosphere you get when people are working together on this one problem,” he said. “Part...

“I like that fact that [public forum debate] is based on the community because anyone can listen in on a public forum round and understand what is happening. We get judged by judges who are parents, teachers, or anyone from your community. I like the fact that it is so universal and inclusive, Joyce Huang (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Joyce Huang believes in the power of education

by Rashmi Iyer, Reporter January 11, 2017

When Joyce Huang (12) tried speech and debate for the first time in sixth grade, she hated it. But ever since she specialized in solely debate in seventh grade, it gradually became one of her greatest...

Load More Stories