The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila
Humans of Harker: Leading with every lesson
Humans of Harker: Leading with every lesson
“For me, discipline can only happen when I try the things that I really like. Since I like basketball and I like guitar, I'm willing to contribute to the discipline. It's not really discipline at that point — it's passion," senior Advay Monga said.
Humans of Harker: Dribble and drive
“Working on Roobi has taught me how to bounce back from failures, and that problems need to be addressed one bit at a time because you can't just tackle huge goals. I learned to not be afraid of failure because every failure is a step towards success. I try not to look back and wish I could change something because I can't. It's the past. Instead, I look forward," senior Daniel Dorfman said.
Humans of Harker: Steeped for success
“With volleyball and Medical Club, I love working with people. I get to work with people who aren't necessarily in my classes or aren't my friends specifically, but we get to work hard and work together towards a common goal. That collaboration aspect is really important to me," senior Navya Samuel said.
Humans of Harker: Cooperation through competition
“Human connection is very important to staying grounded and stable. The people around me are one of the reasons that I'm not fully burnt out, so I really prioritize keeping a good schedule for myself. Being able to prioritize the things in life that give me internal satisfaction is important to me because that's what allows me to have the drive to do good with the rest of my time. Talking to people is a way for me to replenish," senior Kashish Priyam said.
Humans of Harker: Pep in every step
Humans of Harker: Cooking with creativity
Humans of Harker: Cooking with creativity
“There's a lot of value in every moment and everyone around you. I appreciate people who just appreciate the little things. For me, I feel like everyone you meet can teach you a little bit, and that's something that I've really internalized over the years. I think that's part of why I like being around people and different communities so much. Because in each of these communities, you can learn so many different things from everyone," Olivia Xu ('24) said.
Humans of Harker: Purpose towards progress
“I get to choose how much effort and detail I put in, and that’s what you’re going to see in the end. I love that you can see the truth on paper. A lot of my work is in black and white, so I can’t rely on color to cover it up or make it more interesting — I can only rely on my skill and willingness to go into the studio and add to my piece," Katelyn Zhao ('24) said.
Humans of Harker: Envisioning the everyday
"I used to think that I have to keep doing dance just because it's what I’m known for. But now I’ve realized there’s beauty behind all the madness that happens. And it’s now a part of me, so not doing dance or not having Legos is like I’m losing a part of my identity," Luke Mehta ('24) said.
Humans of Harker: Building with style
“Why not? So many things are very foreign or unknown to us, but there’s not much to lose by just trying things. I initially wasn’t very comfortable with DECA, especially with impromptu, but the community really helped me grow out of that. And DECA is now one of my top high school memories. Just giving things a try is really worth it, and if it fails, the worst thing that can happen is you just try something else," Claire Luo ('24) said.
Humans of Harker: It’s all in the details
"Being a lifer, I really want to put my knowledge to use. Being a TEDx speaker is a really big honor in and of itself, but to be able to actually address the Harker community was really important to me because I wanted to have an impact on the place that I've been at for 13 years," Arissa Huda ('23) said.
Humans of Harker: Prescribing change
"I’ve learned discipline: practicing a lot and then knowing what your strengths are, knowing where to improve. That discipline is definitely going to stay with me. If I’m trying to get a big piece of work done in general when I'm interested in it, I'll stop at nothing to reach my goals," Linette Hoffman ('23) said.
Humans of Harker: Artistry in motion
"I have this philosophy with theater. I wholeheartedly believe that my life was made for the stage, and all my make or break moments have happened there. While some people learn best through lectures or visuals, I learn best from having a spotlight on me," Zubin Khera ('23) said.
Humans of Harker: Scripts to success
"One of the most important things for me about performing is its transformative power. There was one concert where we were singing this commission about gun violence, followed by a piece about climate change, a piece about the Holocaust. Watching the audience's expressions and how they reacted to the music we were singing was the first time that I was like, ‘Whoa, music has the power to change lives and engender positive change,’” Sawyer Lai ('23) said.
Humans of Harker: Symphony of spirit
"It’s been fun getting to know the chefs at La Mar, their team and how different cultural influences blend together. For example, they make ceviche, which is a traditional Peruvian dish, but they infuse it with many different cultures. They have a version of their ceviche which is inspired by African tastes and spices, and they also have a Japanese form of that same ceviche dish. I think it’s interesting to watch how these fusion dishes form," Alex Lan ('23) said.
Humans of Harker: Flavors of knowledge
Prakrit Jain ('22) searches for new animal species to help the environment and wildlife.
Humans of Harker: Scorpion spotter
Arnav Gupta ('22) moves a DNA construction.
Humans of Harker: Coding for a cause
“[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.
Humans of Harker: Blast of creativity
"Every single person I've interviewed for Humans of Harker has said one killer quote that has stuck with me even through four years of high school, and I think I really do internalize those messages. There are nuances in every single person's experience that makes it unique to them and also makes it a good lesson for everyone else. It's just amazing to see how much wisdom every single person at Harker has, and it's fascinating to learn about those stories," Erica Cai ('22) said.
Humans of Harker: Harmony in humanity
“Something I took away from baseball is that there's always the opportunity to bounce back when things don't go particularly right. Even the best hitters only go one for three, so being able to push through that is one of the most important parts of the game. Being able to identify what goes wrong and learning from that is important to being able to find success in the future," Mark Hu ('22) said.
Humans of Harker: The perfect pitch
Humans of Harker: Perseverance on par
Humans of Harker: Perseverance on par
It's been obviously rough, turning on the news and seeing another death, seeing another acquittal every single time … but, ‘How much can I do?’ is the question I'm asking myself. ‘How much can I help, and what impact can I have?’” Brian Pinkston ('21) said.
Humans of Harker: For the future and the present
“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.
Humans of Harker: Leading with DECA-cation
Class of 2021: Humans of Harker compilation, part three
Class of 2021: Humans of Harker compilation, part three
“I feel really good about myself when I'm relaxed and enjoying the world. There’s so much to learn about the world and so many ways to do so," Daniel Wang ('21) said.
Humans of Harker: Mapping the unknown
"I'm the person that always has a plan for everything. And then I have backups for the plan, and I have backups for the backups," Nicole Chen ('19) said.
Humans of Harker: Calendars for a cause
"I don’t ever intend on letting the internal love of life that I have leave me. As I grow up and I maintain my love for the random things I do, I know I’ll be happy– and hopefully people around me will be, as well," Mathew Mammen ('19) said.
Humans of Harker: Jack of all trades, master of fun
Humans of Harker: To dance, to feel
Humans of Harker: To dance, to feel
"The more serious side, people will never see. You'll never see who's behind one of these websites that people may be using," Neil Ramaswamy (12) said. "Several freshmen have approached me like, 'hey, you're the really funny guy at school meeting' and I'm like 'hey, yeah, nice to meet you' and at the same time they might be using an application that I've written not knowing that it's me. I kind of get that personal satisfaction knowing that there is a serious side to me, you just don't know about it."
Humans of Harker: Dueling with duality
Humans of Harker: Humanity in art
Humans of Harker: Humanity in art
“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
“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
“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
“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
“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
“I can be serious, and I care a lot about a lot of things, but I also just like having fun and people feeling comfortable being their true selves,” Isabella Spradlin (12) said. “You don't have to be one-sided — you can have different sides of your personality, and different moods.”
Humans of Harker: Isabella Spradlin gleans insight from sisterhood
“This is like a melting pot of Cupertino, Lynbrook, Saratoga, some people from De Anza, so you meet all kinds of people,” Rahul Mehta (12) said. “Half the time I’m not even playing with my friends, so I’m playing with random people. You start off in the beginning a bit wary of each other, and then by end you’re playing like they’re your friends. It’s kind of gradual. Like after a really cool play, you’ll high five each other, and that’s how it all begins.”
Humans of Harker: Rahul Mehta befriends others through banter
"People are always debating, you know, ‘should I go up to a higher weight or not?’ And I’ll just yell, ‘do it, you won’t,’" Tiffany Shou (12) said. "And then, you know, it’s like that challenge, and so it always pushes them pick that higher weight, and then they can accomplish it, so it’s even more gratifying."
Humans of Harker Video: Tiffany Shou pushes her limits in the weight room
“First, I start at my house,” Sparsh Chauhan (12) said. “Then, I turn on Saratoga, and it’s always crowded with traffic and stuff. That’s when I’m setting the music, checking the tire pressure, the gas. After downtown, the road gets smooth, which is when I put the windows down. I go all the way down until there’s a dip and then I go back. Even when I have stuff to do, I drive that same route every day. I don’t have to take directions. I know all the traffic times; I know exactly where I’m going.”
Humans of Harker: Sparsh Chauhan takes pride in his work
“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.”
Humans of Harker: Angel Cervantes chases his goals
“[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.
Humans of Harker: Learning to fall
“You just have to go for it. You think, 'In the future, if I think back and regret it, is that how I want to end up — or would I rather just try something and see what happens?' Usually, it turns out well,” Montek Kalsi (’20) said. 
Humans of Harker: All fun and games
“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.
Humans of Harker: Leadership and love
Humans of Harker: Grit and grind
Humans of Harker: Grit and grind
Humans of Harker: Artistic nonconformity
Humans of Harker: Artistic nonconformity
The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila
The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila
“I play golf because I love it. I dance because, well one, it’s exercise, and two, I love it. I love music; I love dancing; I love moving; I love movement. It makes me feel good. That’s one thing that I truly believe in,” Victor Shin (12) said. “If you’re going to do something that you don’t like, and it doesn’t make you feel good, then why do it? Don’t do it. It makes me feel good; that’s why I do it.”

Humans of Harker: Victor Shin lives colorfully

by Varsha Rammohan, Reporter • March 21, 2018

“Colorful, loud, spontaneous, not afraid to do anything, loud,” Victor Shin (12) said, pausing after his attempt to describe how others perceive him. “Did I say loud?” Everything from his pastel...

"During summer, I had an internship in [San Francisco], and I brought my junior mentality with me, so I was trying to be perfect and I was stressed about everything," Preethi Madabusi (12) said. "The manager sat me down and we had a performance review, so he was analyzing my performance and he said that I was a really hard worker but there was one thing I needed to fix, and that was that I needed to calm down. He said that I tried to be perfect and no one can be perfect. That's when I realized if other people can notice that about me, that's something I should really change."

Humans of Harker: Preethi Madabusi opens up during conversations

by Shreya Srinivasan, Reporter • March 19, 2018

Preethi Madabusi’s (12) English teacher, Mr. Christopher Hurshman characterized Preethi as a “gentle soul.” “She is very ready and eager to see other people’s perspective and to extend empathy...

“I've been to schools that have medical detectors outside the door, and I've been to schools where you can't wear purple because of gang affiliation. And then I've been to schools where it was normal for your nanny to come pick you up,” Shea Tuli (12) said. “I've seen so much in my life in the ten schools that I've been to, and I got to experience so many different, not places, but backgrounds. It's make it so much easier to talk to a person, to relate to them, because at some point in my life, I've probably been in the situation that they're in. Regardless of what state, school, ethnicity, I've had that interaction before.”

Humans of Harker: Shea Tuli’s dynamic background strengthens her connections with others

by Sara Yen, Reporter • March 18, 2018

“I've been to schools that have metal detectors outside the door, and I've been to schools where you can't wear purple because of gang affiliation. And then I've been to schools where it was normal for...

“I grew up with a single mom," Vince Vu (12) said. "It really shaped me to be more responsible. She’s a really good role model. Even when she’s not there, I’m thinking about what she would want me to do. My mom’s success drives me. She was a refugee. She wasn’t born here. Just seeing what she can accomplish, just her, is truly what drives me to work hard at this school and pursue a further education.”

Humans of Harker: Vinny Vu creates his personal brand

by Devanshi Mehta, TALON Seniors Editor • March 17, 2018

If you spot a clean pair of shoes and an outfit crafted to fit the street style aesthetic, it’s probably Vince “Vinny” Vu (12). Often referred to by the nickname Vinny, he is most noted for his...

"It’s happened a couple of times where I sang in outside of school choirs, and I didn’t know anyone there, so then I get to know those people through the music, like ‘how are you singing this part,’ or ‘are you crescendoing, what are you doing?’" Jessica Susai (12) said. "With choirs, I feel really good that I can be in this group of people, and we can perform and make others feel something. It’s a feeling of making other people feel the emotions the songs convey. A lot of the time, you can’t really make people feel emotions like that except with an art form like singing."

Humans of Harker: Jessica Susai finds her place in the chorus of voices

by Anoushka Buch, Reporter • March 12, 2018

Everything is silent, and spotlights slowly brighten on a semicircle of young women in matching floor-length dresses. One girl begins to sing, and gradually, others join in until the whole room is alight...

“Nowadays, a lot of the times the way female characters are interpreted or written are sort of whiney," Jessie Skinner (12) said. "There’s only three things that they can be like: The fat best friend —been her, the nagging wife — been her also, or the super dumb blonde. . . These roles that are mostly portrayed as a not nice female word. [I believe in] bringing in these points of view that are ignored. You just have to find that the sliver of message in every show.”

Humans of Harker: Jessie Skinner imbues her plays with activism

by Gloria Zhang, Asst. Features Editor • March 11, 2018

She may be performing in a setting of a mental asylum as a 2018 student director or dancing towards the chapel in a sparkly silver dress in the annual dance production, but Jessica “Jessie” Skinner...

"My old backpack broke, and my mom was buying me a new one. She was like, ‘Oh, it’s a rainbow backpack, it’s gay like you.’ and I was like, ‘Oh, yes it is,'" Alix Robinson-Guy (12) said. "So now I have my rainbow backpack and it’s very distinctive. I feel like I’m really straightforward, so a lot of the things that people assume about me turn out to just be right. There’s not really a lot of layers going on here. It’s all on the surface, I’m an open book."

Humans of Harker: Alix Robinson-Guy embodies the rainbow

by Anvi Banga, Aquila Asst. News Editor • March 10, 2018

Outside Manzanita, Alix Robinson-Guy (12) squats on a chair while strategically eating her Skittles. Carefully tearing open the fun-sized packet, she pours them all in one hand and gently sifts through...

“I guess probably the best role model that I have, at least from Harker, is Mr. Lepler," Arindam Ghosh (12) said. "He told me to ‘understand, don't memorize.’ I think that's universally applicable, no matter what you're doing. If you actually understand a concept, whether it’s biology or math or even history, you can actually understand a trend like, ‘Why are these things repeating over time?’ You'll understand the content better, and you feel a lot more accomplished at the end of the course if you learned something.”

Humans of Harker: Arindam Ghosh broadens his perspective

by Varsha Rammohan, Reporter • March 9, 2018

Arindam Ghosh (12) is a familiar sight at Rancho San Antonio County Park, where he spends his weekends relaxing and soaking in the mountainous scenery. “When I was younger, my parents just took me...

“My culture is really important to me," Aman Ahluwalia said. "Personally, I think that just by being or looking different, I am able to inherently be more outgoing with myself and take risks that I may have not taken if I just felt normal. I’ve used opportunities that have come up to meet new people instead of shying away from it because I’ve realized, people probably remember me easier and are probably just as curious to learn about me or to meet me as I am to meet them."

Humans of Harker: Aman Ahluwalia lives large

by Zoe Sanders, Reporter • March 8, 2018

It was Mavericks, Half Moon Bay — stormy season. Adrenaline rushing, Aman surfed a 35-foot wave for the first time, eclipsing his previous record by 20 feet. “I accepted the fact that if I wiped...

“When I was younger, in sixth or seventh grade, I used to shy away from talking to other people even if they were even my own peers," Sushant Thyagaraj (12) said. "I would always be the kid who goes to school, just does his thing there, and comes home. It used to be a really regular cycle, and I used to be more comfortable with my own thoughts than talking to other people. But then all of a sudden when I took my yoga teacher training course to become this yoga teacher, that’s when I actually began interacting more with my peers, which eventually led me to break down that shell that was blocking me off from the rest of the world and talking with other people.”

Humans of Harker: Sushant Thyagaraj practices yoga to stay grounded

by Nilisha Baid, Reporter • March 7, 2018

Breathing, yoga poses, relaxation prayers — Sushant Thyagaraj (12) has followed a similar yoga routine ever since he was five years old. The stressors may have shifted over time, but the process remains...

“Everyone around me needs to be constantly smiling and happy and giggling and bouncing off my energy,” Jenna Sadhu (12) said. “Otherwise, I didn't do my job for the day.”

Humans of Harker: Jenna Sadhu embraces laughing out loud

by Meena Gudapati, Editor-in-Chief • March 5, 2018

Walking past the lunch tables, classrooms, or any lounge area on campus, if you catch sight of warm, smiling green eyes and hear a fruity, characteristic laugh, you've spotted Jenna Sadhu (12). When...

“My first year, I was the only sophomore in [Downbeat]," Akhil Arun (12) said. "So it was kind of scary, I’m not going to lie. It took a little bit to grow comfort, but I think when you’re performing or in an ensemble group, it takes a good amount of trust to get out of your skin and not be afraid of getting judged when you’re trying out for solos and things like that. I never did any of that sophomore year because I was so in my head about getting judged. But after a certain point, you realize that these are all your friends and no one’s going to care.”

Humans of Harker: Akhil Arun breaks out of his comfort zone

by Emily Chen, Reporter • March 4, 2018

A single spotlight hits center stage, as the lights reflect off of the blue cast wrapped around his arm. Dressed in teal blue, Akhil Arun (12) confidently lip syncs to Frank Sinatra’s lyrics, mouthing...

Load More Stories