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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

“If you work hard, and you put all your effort in, there's nothing to be stressed out about because the results are going to be there. I put that into most things that I do,” Andrew Chang ('21) said.

Humans of Harker: Just keep swimming

by Michelle Wei, Angelina Hu, and Nicholas Wei July 1, 2021

“Swimmers,” the announcer drawls. On the second block from the left, Andrew Chang ('21) stands confidently, stretching out the last kinks in his tall frame. “Take your mark.” Pause. “Go!” Six...

“Playing football, being a DECA mentor and leading spirit rallies ... I always had a lot of fun doing it, but it was only around the second half of junior year to now where I’ve witnessed the impact that I’ve made not only to my friends but to the underclassmen I've worked with,” Rohan said. “[It's] something that I never expected but it makes it worth it," Rohan Varma (12) said.

Humans of Harker: Touchdowns on the game of life

by Erica Cai and Michael Eng June 30, 2021

Rohan Varma (‘21) laughs as he recounts the night he scored the game-tying touchdown against Lowell High School in September of last year. With no more than ten seconds left, Rohan darted between the...

Class of 2021 alumni Arusha Patil and Michelle Si speak with writer Jody Brady during a field trip to the Beat Museum on June 26. Organized by upper school English teacher Charles Shuttleworth, the field trip included 13 alumni from Shuttleworth's senior English elective courses, Postmodernism and Jack Kerouac and the Beat Generation.

Class of 2021 alumni discover Beat Generation poetry roots in San Francisco

by Sarah Mohammed, Features Editor June 30, 2021

Wooden bookcases line the warm red walls, each shelf brimming with poetry books—yellow-tinted pages lovingly dog-eared at the corners. Hanging from the ceiling, musicians and writers fill a black-and-white...

“It's important to keep sight during that period of learning [of] why you decided to pick up the instrument in the first place ... If you're able to recognize that 'Hey, I'm doing this to build my technique, to play pieces that I want to play, to express myself emotionally however I want to,' you'll find that after a while, your instrument will stop fighting you," Wilson Zhang ('21) said.

Humans of Harker: Soulful strumming

by Michael Eng and Nicholas Wei June 29, 2021

Leaning back on a bench, guitar strapped over his shoulder, Wilson Zhang ('21) allows his fingers to gently glide across the strings of his guitar. The soulful notes tremble in the air, and gradually,...

“With my journey, I never had this end goal of doing environmental research — it all happened through the spontaneous, different things I was focused on in the present. But they led to something much bigger, this intertwined, weird, unique environmental journey,” Aditya Tadimeti ('21) said.

Humans of Harker: From a spark to a blaze

by Anna Vazhaeparambil and Erica Cai June 29, 2021

In the viral video clip depicting the detrimental effects of single-use plastic straws on marine wildlife, a marine biologist pulls out a twisted plastic straw from the nostril of a sea turtle. For Aditya...

The baseball team poses with their CCS Championship Plaque after their 16-14 victory against Stevenson. Down 5-14 by the end of the penultimate inning, the baseball team staged an incredible comeback in the final inning to win the game, scoring 11 consecutive runs on a single out.

Baseball team comes back from 5-14 deficit in final inning to win CCS Championship

by Vishnu Kannan, Co-Managing Editor June 28, 2021

Down 5-14 with two outs in the seventh and final inning of their CCS Championships matchup against Stevenson on June 19, the varsity baseball team staged an incredible comeback, scoring 11 consecutive...

“[Basketball] has given me confidence in my abilities and taught me to not hesitate, like shooting your shot in a game when you're open. That also translates to academics. [The sport] is a large part of who I am because a lot of my own traits, like being a little more confident or being more calm during stressful situations, I’ve learned from basketball,” Srivishnu Pyda (12) said.

Humans of Harker: A gym for the mind

by Saurav Tewari, Sports Reporter June 28, 2021

As Srivishnu Pyda (12) recalls his basketball career at Harker, he emphasizes how impactful basketball has been. As a new freshman, Srivishnu joined the basketball team and found a group of teammates and...

Marchers attend a rally in San Francisco on June 19, 2020, to commemorate Black history and advocate for investment in education. Last Wednesday, the passage of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act established June 19 as a federal holiday.

Juneteenth celebrated nationwide as a federal holiday

by Sabrina Zhu and Arjun Barrett June 23, 2021

Juneteenth celebrations were in full force Saturday following the passage of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act last Thursday, which officially established June 19 as a federal holiday. The Senate...

Head of School Brian Yager reviews the Harker Community Town Hall agenda. The town hall included discussions about the progress made so far, the AIM survey results, reflections and a question and answer session.

Town hall sparks conversations for embracing diversity and inclusion

by Sarah Mohammed and Isha Moorjani June 22, 2021

To discuss new updates, ideas and concerns regarding diversity among students, alumni and faculty, the administration organized Harker’s second set of town halls of the 2020-2021 school year on June...

Art Club members stand behind their work after the completion of the "Love Not Hate" mural in Downtown Palo Alto on June 12. Club members painted the mural in support of the Stop AAPI movement and to show solidarity with the AAPI community.

Pulse of the People: Where color and paintbrushes meet local issues

by Sally Zhu, A&E and Lifestyle Editor June 22, 2021

If you were to walk down University Avenue in Downtown Palo Alto the summer afternoon of June 12, the streets would be filled with tables outside restaurants, families and many large canopy tents to block...

Olivia Guo (12) swings her club during the girls golf team's Senior Night on June 10. The boys and girls golf teams both won CCS Championships last week.

Boys and girls golf teams win CCS Championships

by Vishnu Kannan, Co-Managing Editor June 16, 2021

The boys and girls golf teams brought home CCS Championships last week on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. The boys scored 388, five strokes ahead of second-place Mitty, and the girls followed up the...

Brian Pinkston (12) swings during the boys volleyball team’s victory over Prospect in the CCS Championships on June 5. After a slow start to the season, the boys volleyball team swept through CCS, not dropping a single set in their consecutive victories against Palma, Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep, and Prospect in CCS.

Girl tennis and varsity boys volleyball teams win CCS Championships

by Vishnu Kannan, Co-Managing Editor June 11, 2021

Prior to this year, Harker sports teams had been crowned CCS Champions on three different occasions: boys volleyball in May 2019, girls volleyball in November 2019, and boys soccer in March 2020. In the...

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