The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila
Humans of Harker: Multi-disciplined, multi-dimensional
Humans of Harker: Multi-disciplined, multi-dimensional
Humans of Harker: Continuous and differentiable
Humans of Harker: Continuous and differentiable
Humans of Harker: Power in profiles
Humans of Harker: Power in profiles
Humans of Harker: Widening the aperture
Humans of Harker: Widening the aperture
Humans of Harker: Sharing stories, striking serves
Humans of Harker: Sharing stories, striking serves
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
School Meeting
Honor Council representatives Yash Greene (12), Linda Zeng (12) and Suhana Bhandare (12) share new initiatives. They will be prioritizing visibility and transparency.
School Meeting 9/18: SDS, Wi-Fi update and sustainability initiative
by Aileen Jang and Shreyas Karnam

Conservatory representatives Simon Kirjner (12), Taylor Summers (12), Megha Unny (11) and Emma Zhou (10) kicked off School Meeting by introducing...

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Sofia Vasquez-Perez (12) and Natalie Warmdahl (11), officers of the LatinX Affinity group, perform a traditional folklórico dance. Their performance honors Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrated annually from September 15 to October 15.
School Meeting 9/12: Venture Investment Initiative, Milk Tea Mondays and LatinX Affinity Group Performance
by Victoria Li
MUN presidents Victoria Ma (12) and Sophia Ou (12) welcome new and returning members to attend the MUN Kickoff. The kickoff will take place on Sept. 20 and will include activities to help members build collaboration and public speaking skills.
School Meeting 9/8: Artist-in-residence, Eagle Update and Spirit Kickoff Winners
by Kanav Gupta and Risa Chokhawala
Theater department members Taylor, Daniel Miao (12) and Holly Templeton (12) announce the Oregon Shakespeare Festival trip to Ashland, Oregon. Attendees will participate in workshops and see four plays: “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” “The Importance of Being Earnest,” “Into the Woods” and “As You Like It.”
School Meeting 9/2: Robotics, Spirit Kickoff and evacuation drill
by William Jiang and Sam Li
Speech and Debate Team captains Ananya Pradhan (11), Anoushka Chakravarty (11) and Sahngwie Yim (12) celebrate the Tournament of Champions qualifiers. Harker won for the 10th time in the Cal Berkeley Invitational.
School Meeting 3/20: Fan Art, Speech and Debate and Curly Fryday
by Claire Xu, Assistant Spors Editor
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Global
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine rallies global leaders for support in his country’s grueling war against Russia at the 2024 U.N. General Assembly on Sep. 25. Besides his official address, Zelensky wanted to sell what he calls his “victory plan”, a strategy to secure Ukraine’s victory on their terms, to Western leaders and especially President Biden.
Zelensky urges western support in ongoing war with Russia
by Charlize Wang and Lily Shi • October 10, 2024

As the Russia-Ukraine war rages on after more than two years, Western involvement in the war has become critical to its outcome. Despite the...

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Finland's Foreign Affairs Minister Pekka Haavisto, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Sweden's Foreign Affairs Minister Ann Linde speak during a press conference following the two countries' signing of accession protocols to NATO. While NATO admitted Finland in nine months, Sweden was beset by obstacles that delayed its accession by another year.
Global Headlines (March 2024)
by Andrew Liang, Co-News Editor
The Panama Canal Authority cut traffic through the canal indefinitely by 36% on Jan. 17, leading to global shipping delays. An ongoing El Niño exacerbated the drought in Panama. (Provided by statemag.state.gov)
Severe drought in Panama slashes traffic in canal by a third
by Jonathan Szeto, Assistant News Editor
French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a speech to Congress about the relations between France and the United States in 2018. Macron chose Gabriel Attal as France's new Prime Minister on Jan. 9. (Provided by house.gov)
Global Headlines (January 2024)
by Aryana Bharali and Ella Guo
The Japan Self-Defense Forces scout around a damaged road, looking for an evacuation route, in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa on Jan. 6. "Some people who don't live in the area would like to help, but they don't welcome trucks or food because the roads are destroyed," Japanese teacher Noriyo Ikeda said. (Provided by the Japanese Ministry of Defense)
7.6-magnitude earthquake strikes Japan on New Year’s Day
by Jessica Hu, Assistant Copy Editor
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NBC Sportscaster Bonta Hill shares advice to the attendees. In the session, he highlighted important points, such as staying persistent and demonstrating humility to succeed.Reporter Addison Nguyen (9) at the “ChaRIZZmatic Communications” session discusses ways to implement team bonding activities at her own high school, University Preparatory Academy. The session offered many opportunities for students to interact with journalists with other schools and form new friendships.Harker Journalism Advisers and EICs assemble in a group after leading the "Leadership Roundtable." They shared Harker Journalism's management initiatives and drew inspiration from other schools over the course of the workshop.HoH Managing Editor Heather Wang (11) introduces the publication. “I wanted to share this project with other schools because Humans of Harker is meaningful and my favorite part of Harker Journalism,” Heather said.Sophomores Aileen Jiang, Liana Barooah and Dyuthi Vallamsetty talk about the workshops they attended. Workshops included topics such as developing character-driven ledes and working in sports broadcasting.
Phoebe Lee (11) and Omar Khan (11) introduces UNICEF's initiatives to Dr. Aiyer. UNICEF advocates for children's rights around the world.
Parents laugh at a joke told by computer science teacher Swati Mittal. Mittal explained the curriculum for AP Computer Science A and told stories about the students.
The Trump Administration's anti-DEI policies and research funding cuts have pulled students into a political battle. “It’s a shame that students from other countries are going to have a harder time in order to learn from the American higher education system,” an anonymous senior said.
Frosh Joshua Woon presents his team’s business pitch at the Innovation Challenge, where parents, students and judges attended. His team, which proposed a special ice cube designed to prevent drink spiking, received the “Best Overall” award.
New speed bumps and crosswalks mark the loading zones. They were installed in response to safety concerns around speeding in the parking lots.
Seniors Sophia Bagley and Judi Abdelrazik pose for a photo with a handmade sign. The Class of 2026 arrived on campus at 6 a.m. to kick off the school year as per tradition.
Frosh students and advisers stand as they read the Matriculation Oath. Afterwards, the student body viewed videos of skits about Harker student life.
Rhea Sharma (9) steadies herself on the A-frame as her advisory teammates grip the guide ropes. Her group raced against two other advisories and crossed the finish line first.
Chanting to coordinate their paddling, juniors Arav Vuppala and Neel Kumar accelerate on the kayak. Students also swam, played sports, and enjoyed the beach at Ayala Cove.
Seniors Emma Li and Joy Hu participate in a game of blindfolded Jenga with their friends. The workshop was made to forge deeper bonds within the senior class.
The Harker community bids farewell to nine beloved teachers whose dedication, passion and care have shaped generations of students. Pictured (clockwise from top left): Kevin Oliver, Clifford Hull, Susan Nace, Caren Furtado, Karen Haley, Casey Brown, Dipti Shingnapurkar, Carmela Tejada and Zane Moore.
Hannah Streeper ('25), Caitlyn Wong ('25) and Haden Andrews ('25) take pictures with their graduation caps. Graduation marked the end of four years at Harker for the class of 2025, from being the first on campus at the end of the pandemic in ninth grade to creating bittersweet memories as seniors.
Thick plumes smoke were visible from campus on Tuesday. "Right when I walked outside I could smell the smoke and saw a huge black cloud of it coming from behind the library," said Angelina.
Shreyas Chakravarty delivers a speech warning against blind competitiveness and for greater focus on values. "And you cannot connect your values to your actions without understanding the value of your actions, the input that you put into the world," Shreyas said. "And the way to do that is through service."
Winged Post Editor-in-Chief Katerina Matta and Managing Editor Young Min were selected as first place winners from a pool of around 2,000 students. “This page [shows] how much we paid attention to detail and how much we pushed ourselves to ensure the best quality that we could,” Young said.
Performers from the Downtown College Prep (DCP) Folklórico dance group dance during the Cinco de Mayo celebration. Monday’s performance was also DCP Folklórico’s final public appearance, as DCP will close at the end of the academic year.
Sophomores Hannah Jiang and Joyce Zhang present their business idea “Project H.O.M.E.” Contestants pitched business plans and marketing campaigns to judges on the first day of the competition.
Stanford University lecturer John Edmark explains the mathematics behind his spiral artwork during the Math Club and Art Club joint workshop. Edmark described the relationship between the golden ratio and the Fibonacci numbers, both of which are present in spirals in nature.
Humans of Harker Editor-in-Chief Disha Gupta presents the “Humans of [Your School] workshop. Presenters highlighted HoH project’s mission and went over the process of building a senior’s profile.
Junior Brady Tse speaks during the class council candidates' panel session in the Rothschild Performing Arts Center. Juniors voted Brady, Janam Chahal and Claire Yu as their SAB representatives for the 2025-26 school year.
A group of juniors pose before the camera near the Tech Interactive exhibits. Students commemorated their school year with a night of dancing and celebration at prom on April 19.
Senior Norah Mehanna discusses her business, Curlosophy, with Director of Annual Giving Jun Wang. Curlosophy was one of nine booths that presented their products at BEcon.
Junior Sofia Vasquez-Perez performs a Spanish folk dance to the song “La Madrugada”. Spanish students volunteered to perform singing and dancing acts, instrumental covers and other acts at Noche Cultural.
Harker Journalism staff poses in front of Pike Place in Seattle. Journalism students and advisers visited the city for the annual JEA/NSPA convention.
Sophomore Sophia Zhu delivers her original oratory, titled "Start Slapping." She challenged the misconception that logic and emotion are opposites, emphasizing how emotion can enhance decision-making.
President Donald Trump signs executive orders orders in the Oval Office on February 25. That order suggested the Department of Commerce to impose 25% tariffs on copper.
National Honor Society Co-President Yasmin Sudarsanam (12) serves a brookie to Hannah Levanon (12) as part of NHS and Key Club's joint bake sale. Over half of the eleven the clubs sold out their goods during the two-day event.
From left to right: Sophia Zhu (10), Albert Yao (11), Luke Wu (11), Nicole Dean (10) and Amishi Gupta (11) won the ASB elections for Secretary, Spirit Coordinator, President, Treasurer and Vice President, respectively, for the 2025-26 school year. Student voter turnout reached 91.74% during voting on Thursday.
Spirit Week Day 5: Classes unite in spirit rally, Class of 2025 wins for second consecutive year
Spirit Week Day 3: Students participate in Regatta, belly flop competitions
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