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

Aastha Mangla (12) answers a question during the GSA panel on Oct. 21, which featured other students and teachers. Olivas moderated and asked questions to the panelists about their life experiences surrounding their identities.

‘We’re not colorblind:’ Upper school commemorates members of the community during LGTBQ+ month

by Felix Chen, Vika Gautham, and Sidak Sanghari November 15, 2022

A sea of rainbow stickers glimmers in the sun, placed on the sweatshirts, masks and even foreheads of students. Scattered around campus, Gender-Sexuality Alliance (GSA) members offer these stickers to...

Physicist and research fellow Dr. Jess Wade poses with a bottle of non-Newtonian fluid. Dr. Wade has written over 1,750 articles about women in STEM online.

Empowering the past, present and future generations of women in STEM

by Edward Huang and Kinnera Mulam November 13, 2022

In 2018, British physicist and research fellow Dr. Jess Wade sat down and started to draft a Wikipedia article about American climate scientist Kim Cobb. Noticing Cobb’s outstanding achievements which...

Visual Artist Ta-coumba Aiken poses with one of his works. Aiken was awarded a 2022 Guggenheim Fellowship Award recognizing him for his work in dynamic art, specifically spirit writing and rhythm patterns.

So you wanna be a Guggenheim award-winning artist?

by Sally Zhu and Sarah Mohammed September 19, 2022

When Ta-coumba Aiken got the phone call announcing his Guggenheim Fellowship Award, he didn’t believe it at first. Aiken had applied for the award eight times previously, but in April 2022 he received...

Divya Venkat (11) explains the goals of Make Our Schools Safe, a nonprofit organization devoted to combating gun violence. “The personalities of the people running the stands [were what drew me in],” Ryder Hewitt (9) said. “I got the vibe of the whole club. When I saw very invested, excited people, it made me more invested in their clubs.

75 clubs share new initiatives at annual Club Fair

by Shiv Deokar and Ella Yee September 19, 2022

Students visited different booths set up by clubs and organizations at this year’s Club Fair, which took place in front of the Rothschild Performing Arts Center (RPAC) during lunch on Thursday. The...

In the aftermath of countless mass shootings and an intrusion on our own campus, we cannot be passive bystanders and wait for a more dangerous situation to happen to us in order to enact change. Our system for responding to school shootings needs an update.

Editorial: Responses for school safety require an update

by Editorial Board September 14, 2022

This June, Harker encountered an unarmed intruder on campus — one of the rare times when a shelter-in-place was not a drill. With this incident and the heartbreaking school shooting at Robb Elementary...

An illustration of W.N.B.A. Brittney Griner. The Phoenix Mercury player Brittney Griner was found guilty for smuggling illegal narcotics into Russia on Aug. 4.

W.N.B.A player convicted for smuggling illegal narcotics

by Katelyn Zhao, Sports Editor September 11, 2022

W.N.B.A’s Phoenix Mercury player Brittney Griner was found guilty for smuggling illegal narcotics into Russia on Aug. 4.  Griner originally traveled to Russia for the purpose of playing for the UMMC...

The Harker upper school welcomes new faculty members this year. Among them are the new head of school, the new Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, an athletics trainer and nine new teachers.

Upper school welcomes new faculty faces on campus

by Sabrina Zhu and Olivia Xu September 1, 2022

From bacon lovers to avid Beyoncé dancers, the new teachers and staff members joining the Harker Upper School for the 2022-2023 school year have so much to offer. With nine new teachers and a new athletics...

An illustration of the monkeypox virus and symptoms. After the first recent monkeypox cases confirmation in May, the virus has quickly spread to most parts of the world.

Monkeypox: Everything you need to know

by Edward Huang and Kinnera Mulam August 26, 2022

The monkeypox virus has reemerged this year with a global outbreak, and with around 15,000 recorded cases in the U.S. and 2,000 in California, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared it a global...

Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage month, which takes place in May, originated as a way to celebrate the different ethnicities that make up the American nation. Asian culture is commonly seen appearing at the upper school, especially with the large Asian population of the Bay Area.

Welcoming cultural differences with Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month

When Karina Chen (11) immigrated from Shanghai in fifth grade, she had the unique experience of remembering life before America, keeping in touch with her Chinese side as well as immersing herself in American...

California history’s deep roots in Hispanic and Latinx culture

June 2, 2022

To celebrate the culture and contributions of the Hispanic population, then-president Ronald Reagan established National Hispanic Heritage Month on August 17, 1988. The month-long celebration commenced...

Harker’s efforts and projects to improve Latinx inclusivity and representation

June 2, 2022

“Sí, se puede!” exclaims a medley of green, orange and yellow student-made posters scattered across a bulletin board. Swooping calligraphy and bold fonts on each poster draw the attention of viewers...

Weaving together Hispanic culture and art in a lattice of traditional ideas and modern designs

June 2, 2022

Upper school art teacher Pilar Aguero-Esparza, who identifies as Chicanx, remembers placing leather strips on a table as she contemplated what color to paint them. Once she painted the pieces, traditionally...

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