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

An illustration featuring a cyclist biking down a path. Cycling, in addition to being an environmentally-friendly mode of transportation, is, for many, a sport and a passion.

Cycling onwards: Bikers find their own path

by Emma Milner, Assistant Sports Editor March 9, 2023

Cycling, in addition to being an environmentally-friendly mode of transportation, is, for many, a sport and a passion. The sport redefines the focus on the individual through lessons of personal accountability...

Upper school English teacher Charles Shuttleworth poses with his recent book titled “Desolation Peak: Collected Writings, a collection of Beat Generation poet Jack Kerouac’s writings. “I did some good investigation, and it was really fun,” Shuttleworth said. “I love [Kerouacs] writing, I really respect it, so to be able to transcribe it just for myself was worth it. Overall, I felt I got to know and understand him better than I ever had.”

Taking a peek into “Desolation Peak”

by Olivia Xu, Humans of Harker Managing Editor February 16, 2023

With $14.57 in his pocket and 900 miles to travel, Jack Kerouac hitchhiked to the North Cascades National Park in July of 1956. Beyond fulfilling his role as a fire lookout, he sought enlightenment, an...

Head of upper school Paul Barsky claps after reading excerpts from English teacher Charles Shuttleworths recently published book “Desolation Peak: Collected Writings. Barsky read from number 11 of 12 choruses and thanked Shuttleworth for his scholarship.

School meeting recap 11/28/22: Winterfest, “Desolation Peak” and Middle Eastern Student Association

by Felix Chen, Assistant News Editor December 6, 2022

Associated Student Body (ASB) President Kris Estrada (12) opened the school meeting on Nov. 28 after students entered Zhang Gymnasium to the tune of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You”...

Estelle Cimino, who visited the upper school campus with the Beat Museum on Wheels, reads a poem from Beat Generation author Ruth Weiss at their speaker event on Feb. 24. The BeatMobile came to the campus for the day to educate about the Beat Generation authors of the 1950s.

Beat Museum on Wheels teaches about Beat Generation at upper school visit

by Sally Zhu, A&E and Lifestyle Editor March 4, 2022

The Beat Museum on Wheels visited the upper school campus on Feb. 24 and stayed throughout the day, setting up a truck outside of Manzanita where students could explore the Beat Generation and also delivering...

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 Shuttleworths 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...

Neeli Cherkovski, renowned Beat Generation poet, speaks to students in Charles Shuttleworth’s Jack Kerouac class on Thursday, Dec. 1 during first period. Cherkovski read from his newest poetry book, Hang on to the Yangtze River, and also spoke about his life journey with poetry.

The Poet’s Project: Beat Generation author Neeli Cherkovski finds the world through poetry

by Sarah Mohammed and Isha Moorjani December 8, 2020

Poet Neeli Cherkovski recounts afternoons of picking lemons from a lemon tree in his home garden and listening to his little dog yapping at squirrels on his redwood deck in the distance. As hummingbirds...

POLL-itics: Faculty perspectives

POLL-itics: Faculty perspectives

by Isha Moorjani and Sarah Mohammed November 3, 2020

With Harker Aquila’s new 2020 election repeater, POLL-itics, hear from members of the Harker community on various political issues ahead of the 2020 election on Nov. 3. This installment of POLL-itics...

Upper school English teacher Charles Shuttleworth poses with Desolate Angel, a biography of Jack Kerouac. Shuttleworth, who was chosen as the annual Moses Greeley Parker lecturer, presented his research on American novelist Kerouac in a virtual lecture titled “Kerouac: The Buddhist Years.”

Upper school English teacher delivers lecture for Lowell Celebrates Kerouac Festival

by Lucy Ge and Sarah Mohammed October 16, 2020

Hands clasped together, leaning on a wooden podium in his classroom, upper school English teacher Charles Shuttleworth, who was chosen as the annual Moses Greeley Parker lecturer, presents his research...

Award-winning composer and musician David Amram answers questions from the audience at last Fridays Speaker Series performance. Amram shared wisdom from his lifes work as a jazz and classical musician, telling anecdotes along the way.

Award-winning composer David Amram imparts wisdom, music at Speaker Series performance

by Kathy Fang and Jin Tuan November 12, 2019

Award-winning composer David Amram wrapped up his week's visit at the upper school as this year's artist in residence with his performance at this year’s Speaker Series event in the Patil Theater last...

Composer David Amram, who will be visiting the upper school as this years artist in residence. His visit begins tomorrow and will last throughout the week, and he will host a number of workshops, lectures and talks for students to learn more about music and art.

Composer David Amram to visit upper school next week as artist in residence

by Kathy Fang and Jin Tuan November 3, 2019

Award-winning composer David Amram will travel to the upper school next week as this year’s artist in residence, bringing a series of music workshops, lectures and performances. A lifelong musician,...

Jami Cassady Ratto, who is Beat Generation author Neal Cassadys daughter reminisces about her childhood memories, telling students in the Beat Generation English elective about her recollections of her father.

Beat Generation author Neal Cassady’s daughter visits English class

by Kathy Fang, Managing Editor January 12, 2019

Jami Cassady Ratto, who is the daughter of Beat Generation author Neal Cassady, visited English teacher Charles Shuttleworth's Kerouac and the Beat Generation class yesterday during fourth period to speak...

Charles Shuttleworth at Monarch Pass, Colorado, on the 39th day of the trip. The ride, lasting a total of 62 days, started in Yorktown, Virginia, and spanned across America, ending in San Francisco.

Meet your teacher: English teacher completes summer charity ride across US, raising $5595 for MS

by Kathy Fang and Nina Gee September 6, 2017

 After two months of biking through lush farmlands dotted with livestock and llamas, arid canyons dotted with wildlife and forested mountain ranges, upper school English teacher Charles Shuttleworth has...

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