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’ve always done my best to keep an open mind and try everything just once. You won’t ever know if you’ll like something if you never attempt it and that’s what I strive to do. At the end of the day, I just want to spend my time pursuing things that I actually enjoy doing. I’m going to do the things that are genuinely meaningful to me — things that give me the outlet I need to impact others,” Ray Wang (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Dribbling with drive

by Kushal Shah, Sports Reporter May 10, 2021

32 seconds. The scoreboard reads 62-61, with the opposing team up by a single point. A whistle’s shriek pierces the air, signaling the inbounding of the ball. Catching the inbound ball, the point guard...

“Being able to report on my community from the sidelines has given me a platform to be able to do something with my voice, to find communities that were not covering and to connect with them, to form a bridge between, quite literally, the people who are on the gym floor playing that sports game and the people in the stands,” Anna Vazhaeparambil (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Pictures for a purpose

by Sarah Mohammed, Asst. Features Editor May 10, 2021

Anna Vazhaeparambil (12) remembers carving a small space for herself on the press stand, hands smoothly adjusting the lens of her black camera, as she takes pictures alongside journalists from some of...

“I find it more important to actually use your intelligence than to just be intelligent, so starting my own school to teach math taught me a lot about the way I approach [the subject]. I’m always trying to adapt my own skills as my students come up with interesting ways to solve different types of problems, so I hope that I’m remembered not necessarily as someone who was only smart, but more for the way that I used that intelligence to help people and create new things,” Utkarsh Priyam (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Putting the pieces together

by Arushi Saxena, Co-Managing Editor May 6, 2021

Ask anyone what they think of Utkarsh Priyam (12), and “smart” is undoubtedly the first word that comes to mind. A few minutes of conversation reveal that his talents lie far beyond his intelligence,...

“Ultimately, I want to be able to venture into new things and gain a breadth of experiences and perspectives, be able to document and fully appreciate every moment, every memory, every connection, and then pass on that same journey and hopefully make an impact somewhere along the way,” Helen Zhu (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Searching for the melody

by Irene Yuan, Multimedia Editor May 6, 2021

Helen Zhu (12) remembers sitting in the auditorium watching the oldest students at her choir perform a song by the name of “Prayer of the Children.” At 6 years old, she was in awe of the way the group...

“One of the best things about senior year is that you can take much more niche classes, and I would tell [people] to take great advantage of that, because Harker has classes that no other schools offer. Its benefited me [and] Im really glad, retrospectively, that I tried a bunch of classes I had no idea about instead of trying to only take things I was familiar with,” Avery Young (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Venturing into the unknown

by Lavanya Subramanian, TALON Student Life Editor May 6, 2021

With one hand holding a bag full of snacks and the other holding a volleyball, Avery Young (12) makes his way onto the sand courts of West Valley College. After spotting his friends on the middle court,...

“I don’t know if it’s part of a culture, but in our household, one of the main emphasis was always giving back and appreciating what you already have. I feel like giving back … everybody can just do that,” Cordelia Callaud-Guyart (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Redonner

by Ananya Sriram and Alena Suleiman May 6, 2021

Redonner. The foreign word is simply a way to say “giving back” in French, yet it perfectly encapsulates a major aspect of Cordelia Callaud-Guyart (12). “I don’t know if it’s part of a culture,...

“Everything happens for a reason, so in my mind, theres going to be a class or a professor, or an assignment or something that leads me somewhere. Thats my vision … [and] well see [how it ends up],” Anna Arnaudova (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Cheez-its and chuckles

by Ariana Goetting and Defne Avkarogullari May 5, 2021

Seeing Anna Arnaudova (12) arrive at school with a box of Cheez-its on Mondays is not an unusual sight for classmates and teachers. Anna has grown fond of the Harker community from her time at Harker since...

“Its important that you improve yourself, in some way, every single day. Because then if youre not doing that, youre going backwards,” Levi Sutton (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Incessant improvement

by Maggie Yan and Brandon Zau May 4, 2021

Levi Sutton (12) recalls stepping through the crowds, the pre-pandemic stadium roaring. Having attended fifteen Oakland A’s games in a single summer pre-COVID, he's disappointed since the pandemic will...

“One thing Im always on the lookout for is new creative outlets and I think cooking is a really great way to express myself. I like exploring new recipes or exploring in general. Its a really calming activity and a really good way to balance out how hectic school life is. Ive been reading a bunch, and Ive tried Paint-By-Numbers because I cant paint. Ive also picked up guitar, tried longboarding, inline skating and learning Korean,” Stephanie Shen (12) said.

Humans of Harker: An aura of sunshine

by Jessica Tang, Reporter May 4, 2021

The chatter in a bustling market greets Stephanie Shen (12) as she strolls down an aisle lined with various classic Asian snacks, browsing for new ingredients to experiment with in her newest boba batch....

“[Cheer has] helped me become more confident [and] be more open to trying out different things, because I did it out of nowhere and tried it … A lot of things that I now really enjoy in life, things I wouldnt normally do, I did on a whim. I found that the [activities] that I did randomly are now some of my favorite parts of my experience,” Anish Kilaru (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Cheer and positivity

by Julie Shi and Selina Xu May 4, 2021

As lights flash in the wide stadium, Anish Kilaru (12) stands front and center on the football field with the rest of his cheer team. It’s the long-anticipated homecoming game, and the night’s halftime...

“Everyone should have access to education. Ive had access to good education my entire life, and it is something that Ill always be grateful for. Especially when youre younger, your education sets the foundation for your worldview, how you perceive things, and how you interact with other people,” Arohee Bhoja (12) said.

Humans of Harker: By my own terms

by Aastha Mangla, Reporter May 4, 2021

With her Apple pencil leaving a final vibrant shade of orange, Arohee Bhoja (12) saves her abstract sunflower sticker to Procreate, updating her stock on Redbubble shortly afterwards. The other designs...

“I would never want to look back on my life with regret for things I wanted to do, so if you’re considering doing something and you think it may not end well, but it could also end well, I think you should go and do whatever it is you want to do,” Emma Boyce (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Positive persistence

by Sania Gupta and Kinnera Mulam May 3, 2021

With her long brown hair slicked back in a high ponytail and her eyes trained on the ball, Emma Boyce (12) sprints across the soccer field as her opponents trail behind her. Her white jersey etched with...

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