This article originally appeared in the spring 2015 Harker Quarterly.
1976
Cindy Cottrell-DeAngelo reports that Michael Menzel got married this past summer. He recently joined Facebook and looks forward to reconnecting with his former classmates.
1981
Class agent Kristin (Scarpace) Giammona, Harker’s elementary division head, recently met up with Ashley Skipwith ’98. “She was in my grade 5 homeroom in 1993-94. She is currently a housing coordinator at Harvard University and lives in Boston. While I was in the Boston area for the NAIS conference, we reconnected. We had not seen each other in 20 years, so it was great fun. We keep in touch via Facebook,” recalled Giammona.
1982
Dana Lurie has enjoyed keeping in touch with some fellow Eagles this past year through various informal get-togethers. She and her partner recently sold their business, Green Turtle Travel, but will continue to travel back and forth to Ecuador/Galapagos a few times a year to visit family. Dana and classmate Michelle Magboo hope to co-host a class get- together in April.
Tina (Johnson) Murray lives in Los Gatos with her husband, 13-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son. Tina continues fundraising for her daughter’s local public school, and most recently joined the board of directors of the Skylar Hadden Foundation to ensure program funding for her son’s school program for children with Asperger’s and ADHD.
1984
Matt McCowan (MS ’84) shared that he attended Bellarmine College Prep for high school before going onto Cal State Chico and the University of Hawaii, Manoa, for college. He was then off to the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic and has been in private practice since 1998, running his own business called Chico Back and Neck Pain Center. “I am married to my high school sweetheart and have two girls, Dylan, 14 and Josie, 10,” he added.
This article originally appeared in the spring 2015 Harker Quarterly.
Harker Welcomes Alumni Home for the Holidays
Sixty alumni from Harker’s classes of 2011 through 2014 returned to campus for the annual Home for the Holidays event held in early January. The casual afternoon of refreshments and socializing took place on the upper school campus in the festively decorated Nichols Hall atrium.
Upper school faculty and staff were invited to join in the fun, welcoming back and reminiscing with the college-age alumni, who were in town during their winter breaks.
Eric Zhang ’13 noted that it felt strange to be walking around the campus as a visitor and not as a student. “It’s odd to be here with no obligations,” he said.
Standing next to him, pal J.T. Cho ’13 agreed, adding, “It’s a new chapter in our lives.”
Zhang and Cho had already spent time hanging out over the break, and said they would continue to stay in touch with one another, the school and their peers.
According to Karri Baker ’84, director of alumni relations, alumni needn’t wait for the Home for the Holidays gathering to pop by and say “hi.” “We love to see them any time of the year!” she enthused.
Recent Harker Graduates Publish Articles in Prestigious Academic Journals
Thanks to their exceptional research, writing and critical-analysis skills, several recent Harker graduates have published articles on topics related to STEM, the social sciences and history. Vikram Sundar ’14, Jenny Chen ’13, Kevin Duraiswamy ’14 and Sarah Howells ’12 all had papers printed in highly regarded academic journals.
In February, the Harvard Political Review (HPR) published Sundar’s article, titled “Harvard Should Fix Its Gender Gap,” which focuses on the lack of women in STEM fields on campus. Written and published entirely by Harvard undergraduates, the HPR was launched in 1969 and remains America’s preeminent student journal of politics, policy and culture.
Sundar said he first became interested in writing the piece after noticing that very few of Harvard’s female students were pursuing STEM at a high level. That discovery, he explained, led him to try to determine what causes the gender gap at a high-level institution like Harvard and how the university could help fix the problem.
“The reaction (to the article) has been uniformly positive both from female students with STEM interests at Harvard and from their professors,” he reported.
In his article he asserts that it is easy to attribute the gender gap in technical fields to factors outside of Harvard’s control, and allows that this is largely true. He goes on to say, however, that there are simple steps Harvard can take to help reduce these discouraging factors. “After all, the existence of the gender gap means that we are losing around one-half of all highly capable STEM students because of cultural entrenchment,” he writes at the paper’s conclusion.
While doing research for his paper, Sundar spoke to fellow Harvard student and Harker alumna Ramya Rangan ’12, who is also making strides to level the field for women in STEM. Rangan is the current president of Harvard’s Women in Computer Science Society.
“This article shows that two of our graduates [now] at Harvard are dedicated to the issue of equity in STEM classes. A proud moment for us,” said Jennifer Gargano, assistant head of school for academic affairs.
Donna Gilbert, chair of the history and social sciences department at Harker’s upper school, noted that two alumnae also have been involved with the HPR: Olivia Zhu ’11 is the publication’s digital editor and Emily Wang ’13 has published a number of articles in the journal.
Meanwhile, Chen, a Stanford sophomore, submitted a paper she originally wrote as a Harker senior for Damon Halback’s course “International Issues in Public Policy” (now offered as “Modern International Affairs”) to the Stanford Undergraduate Research Journal (SURJ).
Her paper, “Employing a Vaccine-Centered Maximalist Policy to Mitigate the Cholera Crisis in Haiti” was published in the journal’s spring 2014 issue. According to Sue Smith, Harker’s library director who co-taught the research portion of Halback’s class, Chen was one of only two freshmen included in that issue of SURJ.
“In her bio for the journal, Chen says she was first introduced to public health policy (now her major, along with human biology) in Mr. Halback’s class, and that it inspired her to pursue research in epidemiology,” said Smith.
“I wrote my paper on cholera in Haiti in Damon Halback and Susan Smith’s International Issues in Public Policy class,” recalled Chen. “We were given a lot of freedom when choosing our paper topics, but I knew from the get-go that I wanted to write about global health and infectious disease. At the time Haiti was still reeling from the 7.0 earthquake in 2010, so I did more research on the issue and ended up writing my policy proposal for the class on the cholera epidemic that had developed in the aftermath of the earthquake.”
For the SURJ version of her article, Chen added an abstract and some final revisions. “The journal has been circulated among various research symposiums on campus, and to my surprise, I have even been approached by classmates and faculty who have read the article,” she said.
Kevin Duraiswamy ’14, now at Princeton University, was recently published by the well-respected Concord Review. His paper, which he wrote for one of Harker’s two humanities endowments programs, is titled “Ancients Alive: The Influence of the Roman Republic on James Madison’s Conception of the Senate and the Resulting Impact on the American Constitution.”
The Concord Review: A Quarterly Review of Essays by Students of History is the only academic journal in the world to publish the research papers of high school students. More than 1,000 history research papers have been published in The Concord Review, featuring authors from around the globe.
Duraiswamy received his grant from The John Near Excellence in History Education Endowment Fund, founded in 2009, which annually sponsors research grants for students to write on their chosen topic in U.S. history. The Mitra Family Endowment, established in 2011, provides research grants for students writing on humanities subjects, including literature, art, music and the social sciences.
Like Duraiswamy, Howells attends Princeton University and found success with a paper that began as a project funded by a Mitra grant. Howells was the first Mitra scholar, and her paper, “Winston Churchill’s Efforts to Unify Britain from 1940-1941,” brought her first place in the 2012 inaugural Churchill Research Paper Competition sponsored by the University of Minnesota’s Churchill Center. “I was pretty surprised,” Howells said of winning the Churchill prize. “Since this was the first year of the competition, I was not sure what the expectations were.”
The Near and Mitra endowments have become symbols of the Harker community’s dedication to helping students pursue a broad array of interests. The endowments have funded 21 meticulously researched historical analyses to date.
Duraiswamy, when asked about his reaction to being published in The Con- cord Review, noted: “The experience of writing the Near paper was wonderful. I really enjoyed being able to pick a topic that interested me, explore it at a deep level and produce original work on
the subject. I learned so much not only about what I was researching but also about the process of writing a longer research paper, and that has left me well prepared for college. I am deeply grateful to Harker for giving me the opportunity to do such a project and to The Concord Review for recognizing the work I had done.”
Alumnus Makes Forbes’ Prestigious ‘30 Under 30’ List!
Andy Fang ’10, co- founder of the Palo Alto-based, on-demand food delivery startup DoorDash, was included on Forbes magazine’s prestigious “30 Under 30” list of young movers and shakers in the consumer tech category.
DoorDash (www.doordash.com) hires its own drivers to offer home delivery from restaurants unable to provide such service. In just two years, 22-year-old Fang, a Stanford graduate with a degree in computer science, and business partner Stanley Tang have raised an impressive $19.7 million in startup funding. DoorDash now serves five major metropolitan areas.
A leading source for reliable business news and financial information, Forbes is well known for its annual lists and rankings. The “30 Under 30” list (http://www.forbes.com/30under30/#/) prides itself on predicting the brightest and most ambitious young adults to watch in the coming year.
The 2015 categories include venture capital, enterprise technology, consumer technology, sports, social entrepreneurs, science, retail, music, media, marketing, manufacturing, law, entertainment, health care, games, food, finance, energy, education and art. More than 600 millennials were featured on the lists, with Silicon Valley at the forefront of startup culture.
Fang, a former Harker Quarterly cover boy (having been featured in a graduation photo in the summer 2010 edition), said he is honored to have been selected. “I’m grateful for my friends and family for helping me get to this point and glad to have the support of the Harker community!”
Last year three Harker alumni were included on the Forbes list. To read about them: https://staging.news.harker.org/ harker-alumni-make-forbes-coveted- 30-under-30-lists-of-rising-young- stars/.
If readers know of other Harker alumni who made the Forbes list, please bring them to our attention by writing news@harker.org.
Harker Holds Alumni & Family Reunion in Taipei, Taiwan
On March 7, 50 alumni families gathered for a Harker family reunion in Taipei, Taiwan! At the event, alumni, their spouses, parents, children and grandparents joined Harker administration members Joe Rosenthal, executive director of advancement (accompanied by his wife, Blanca), and Pam Dickinson, director of the Office of Communication and former weekend boarding program director (aka “housemama”) to reminisce about their time at Harker and hear about current school happenings.
The enjoyable evening included a special tribute to Harriet Skapinsky, who established Harker’s world-renowned English as a Second Language program. In addition, a Distinguished International Alumnus Award was presented to Laurence Kao ’89, former boarding student, international patent lawyer and law professor in Taiwan. The event also included a visit from a magician, who kept the kids enthralled.
Alumni Celebrations
Please join us in congratulating the following alumni:
On Feb. 9, Barrett James Kai-shi Hollier was born in a car on the freeway (I-10 in New Orleans) on the way to the hospital, delivered breech by his daddy, Brian Hollier! Mom Katie (Chou) Hollier ’95, daughter of Harker’s upper school history teacher Carol Zink, and baby are doing fine. “My other daughter, also a Harker alum, had her baby on Dec. 23 the more conventional way. Baby Margaret was born at the hospital in Monterey. Mom is Kristine (Chou) Hime ’98, a naval officer and student at the Naval Postgrauate School in Monterey,” said the proud grandmother.
Christina Aquila ’95 and her husband, Marc, welcomed their second daughter, Poppy Erin Aquila, on Dec. 10. “She joins big sister Violet at our home here in Vermont. Coincidentally, Poppy shares the same birthdate as Kate Stober’s [’95] son Alex, who was born Dec. 10 the year before,” shared Christina.
Sophi Scarnewman ’09 (formerly Newman) got married last March and is still riding the newlywed high! “My husband, Bobby, and I are especially excited about how we combined our last names: Newman (me) and Scarduzio (him) into a shared last name,” she said. Here, a group shot from her wedding features the happy couple with Harker friends. From L to R: Sharon Su ’08, Alix Briggs ’08, Ju-Hyun (Matt) Park ’10, Kendra Moss ’10, Bobby and Sophi, Lexi Ross ’09 and Joe Hospodor ’09.
Julia Gitis ’03 got married on June 8, 2014 at the Presidio in San Francisco. She met her husband, Max Lipschultz, in Boston while in graduate school at Harvard. “Both my maids of honor, seven out of my nine bridesmaids, one groomsman and many of our guests were Harker alumni!” she said. “One of my bridesmaids, Gabrielle DeMers ’03 was part of the Harker Conservatory and is now an opera singer. She sang during my wedding ceremony,” recalled Julia.
Andy Fang ’10, co-founder of the Palo Alto based on-demand food delivery startup DoorDash, was included on Forbes magazine’s prestigious “30 Under 30” list of young movers and shakers in the consumer tech category.
DoorDash (www.doordash.com) hires its own drivers to offer home delivery from restaurants unable to provide such service. In just two years, 22-year-old Fang, a Stanford graduate with a degree in computer science, and business partner Stanley Tang, have raised an impressive $19.7 million in startup funding. DoorDash now serves five major metropolitan areas.
A leading source for reliable business news and financial information, Forbes is well known for its annual lists and rankings. The 30 Under 30 list (http://www.forbes.com/30under30/#/) prides itself on predicting the brightest and most ambitious young adults to watch in the coming year.
The 2015 categories include venture capital, enterprise technology, consumer technology, sports, social entrepreneurs, science, retail, music, media, marketing, manufacturing, law, entertainment, health care, games, food, finance, energy, education and art. More than 600 millennials were featured on the lists, with Silicon Valley at the forefront of startup culture.
Fang, a former Harker Quarterly cover boy (having been featured in a graduation photo in the summer 2010 edition), said he is honored to have been selected. “I’m grateful for my friends and family for helping me get to this point and glad to have the support of the Harker community!”
If any readers know of other Harker alumni to have made the Forbes lists that we may have overlooked, please bring them to our attention by writing News@harker.org.
This article originally appeared in the winter 2014 Harker Quarterly.
2002
In July, Akhsar Kharebov‘s startup, Infometers, was acquired by Validic of Durham, N.C. Validic is the health care industry’s leading technology platform for easy data access to a world of mobile health and in-home devices, wearables and patient health care applications. Located in Mountain View, Infometers has become Validic’s West Coast office. The Infometers team will continue to work on the companies’ joint vision of connecting monitoring device data to the health care system.
Across the Atlantic, Tiffany Duong ran with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain, as part of her “#30×30” – the 30 things she did to celebrate turning 30! She describes the experience as scary and intense, but awesome.
In September, Sean Haq visited Seoul, Korea, to attend Jerry Chi‘s wedding. For significant events like weddings, traveling in style is a must! Photos of the friends enjoying the occasion are included in the Celebrations section.
Isabella Liu is a second-year MBA student at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business. Prior to Tuck, she lived for six years in the heart of New York City, where she got a master’s in Chinese history and later worked in finance. Naturally, moving to the woods of New Hampshire for school was a huge culture and lifestyle shift. This past summer, Isabella was able to return home when she interned with the business planning and innovation team at Intel. Now back at Dartmouth to finish her MBA, she has finally come to love the beauty and serenity of the Upper Valley. At Tuck, Isabella has been focused on entrepreneurship, technology, strategy and leadership. While there is a lot to enjoy about business school, her favorite part is playing bass in the Tuck (pop rock) band. After school, Isabella plans to move back to the Bay Area to work on her ecommerce search engine startup.
2003
Peter Noonan has a new baby girl! Please see the Cel- ebrations section for details.
2004
Mickey Selbo-Bruns married Caitlin Burgess in Vermont this past July. Please see the Celebrations section for details!
2005
Kim Wong was thrilled to appear in the short movie “Text Amy,” which screened at the Miami Short Film Festival Dec. 5-12 (check out the trailer: http://www.textamyshortfilm.com/). Kim is a musical theater certificate graduate of the Harker Conservatory and actor/ director living in New York. She previously appeared on the TV show Blue Bloods (http://www.cbs.com/shows/blue_bloods/) on CBS, as a schoolgirl, about two-thirds of the way through the show. “This past summer I worked at Triad Stage in Greensboro, N.C., playing Helena in ‘All’s Well That Ends Well.’ I also appeared in the re-enactments on the Animal Planet show ‘Monsters Inside Me.’ (Beware, this show is a bit graphic! It’s all about parasites.) I’m filming a lead in a new Web series called ‘Working Title’ that will be produced next year,” reported Kim.
Sara Laymoun had a baby girl. Please see the Celebrations section for details!
Shaun Mohan passed on the good news that he matched for a surgery residency at Stanford. “It is the postgraduate training which follows medical school. The process is a bit different than college/med school applications in that you and the program each create a rank list, and on Match Day you find out the results of where you will be continuing your training. Residency training differs in length for different specialties, but allows for obtaining your medical license after your first year, and becoming a board- certified physician at the end of your last year of training,” Shaun explained.
2006
After three years living in Kazakhstan, Lauren Gutstein has returned to the East Coast to work at the Wilmington Friends School in Delaware. She describes the school as “Harker-like with a Quaker flair.”
In September, Neil Chao and Heidi Wang ’08 celebrated their marriage at the Los Altos History Museum. Several Hark- er alums joined in the festivities. Please see the Celebrations section for more details!
A group of ’06 grads had a fun mini reunion in Boston, when Meghana Dhar moved over the summer to start school. “I moved to Boston in August and found that a lot of Harker alumni were in the area, so I coordinated a couple get-to-gethers,” she recalled. Shown in this picture with her are pals Kat Hudkins, Hann Yew, Amira Valliani, Avanti Deshpande, Ira Patnaik, Amulya Mandava and Yi Sun.
2009
The Harker Class of 2009 held its five-year reunion at the Sonoma Chicken Coop in San Pedro Square on Nov. 29. A good time was had by all!
2011
Ziad Jawadi reports that he is now a senior at Georgetown University studying Middle Eastern studies. “My professional interests lie in financial services and public policy. This summer, as a strategy consulting intern at Deloitte in Abu Dhabi, I advised clients on strategies to achieve institutional objectives through quantitative and qualitative analysis. In the past, I worked with the National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce, the U.S.-UAE Business Council, as a research assistant to a leading professor at Georgetown and the Republican Governors Association. My internships developed my analytical skills and quantitative reasoning while creatively problem-solving with teams,” he said. Ziad further shared that he has a passion for business and trade relations between America and the Middle East with skills blending the two fields. “I am of Arab heritage and have an solid background in the Middle East. As an Arab-American, I feel a sense of moral duty to return to the Arab world post-graduation and help develop it,” he added.
2012
Nicole Dalal and Govi Dasu ’12 both happened to be in Delhi working on research projects and decided to have an impromptu meet-up. They enjoyed lunch at Khan Market and then took the metro over to the famous Jama Masjid, where this picture was taken.
2013
In mid-September, Maverick McNealy, who is on the Stanford University golf team, won his second golf tournament of the season at The Illini Invitational, held at the famed Olympia Fields in Chicago, site of several major championships. The final results show Maverick picking up his second win in as many outings by claiming top honors at the invitational. Maverick, who collected the first win of his collegiate career at the Southwestern Intercollegiate, fired three consecutive rounds of 71 to finish 3-over-par 70 at Olympia Fields Country Club. To read more about it: http://smgstories.blogspot.com/2014/09/cardinal-play-at-famed-olympia-fields.html.
Michelle Douglas, Tara Rezvani, Neel Bhoopalam and Patricia Huang had a blast hanging out together in Lake Tahoe this past summer. Here they are shown getting ready to enjoy a fun afternoon of water sports.
2014
Katie Gu is a freshman at Stanford University and a former member of the Santa Clara Aquamaids synchronized swimming club. She represented the United States at the 2011 Comen Cup as a member of the U.S. 13/15 national team and at the 2014 Junior Pan American Championships as a member of the U.S. junior national team. To read more about her: http://www.gostanford.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=30600&ATCLID=209694416
In mid-November upper school math teacher Victor Adler had a reunion dinner with 12 alumni from the Class of 2014 – all Stanford students who went to Harker when Adler served as dean of their class. They met for a delicious dinner at Thaiphoon in Palo Alto, where they enjoyed catching up with one another.
This article originally appeared in the winter 2014 Harker Quarterly.
1973
Alan Stevens sends a warm “aloha” from Maui, where he now resides. Previously, he lived in Pasadena and worked as the general manager for Gryphon Corp. for 15 years. Four years ago, after his father passed away, he relocated to Hawaii to be near his mother, who was living there by herself. He has taken up paddle boarding, enjoys taking his girlfriend’s dog out for walks on the beach and gardening, and is learning American Sign Language; he also helps take care of his mother’s house. “I put a new roof on the house and next year I am going to build another rental myself. I also learned how to blow glass. I belong to the Rotary Club of Kihei-Wailea and am active in the community. Last but not least, I finally have the time to pursue my passion, which is playing music. I am currently in three bands as a guitar player and working on a solo project,” he said.
1981
Michael Cini is keeping busy as a juvenile probation officer with Maricopa County, Ariz., where he has worked for nearly 18 years while raising his two teenage children. Reflecting back upon his time at Harker he said, “My favorite memory was when actor Burt Young came to Harker and signed autographs for everyone there. I still have it to this day. Also I have fond memories of playing tetherball.”
Monette Matkovich Lindblom is a U.S. Marine Corps Veteran. “I’ve been living in Reno for almost 20 years with my husband, Monte. We have two children, Letishia (24) and Zachary (14). We have a grandson, Cash (1). Letishia is expecting another baby boy in December! My favorite memory would be of doing a commercial skit in Miss Conway’s third grade class. We were sitting in a rowboat singing the Oscar Meyer bologna song! I also remember playing out at recess that year while it was snowing. We were all so happy that day because it rarely snowed in San Jose,” she recalled.
1987
Joe Chen recently visited the Saratoga campus, site of the school’s former boarding program. Here he is shown taking a selfie with Pam Dickinson, director of Harker’s Office of Communication. Joe had just completed a month- long rotation at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center and was soon headed back to medical school at Creighton University in Nebraska. “We were having fun touring the old dorm area and this photo was taken outside what was once Joe’s dorm window,” recalled Pam.
This article originally appeared in the winter 2014 Harker Quarterly.
In fall, two annual events – the Harker Harvest Festival and Homecoming – brought many alumni together, where they enjoyed reconnecting with the Harker community.
At the end of September, Harker’s Homecoming game was held on Davis Field, where alumni were warmly welcomed home during a family-friendly tailgate party. Several dozen alumni turned out for the party, where they enjoyed dinner, mingled with faculty and staff, and watched the Eagles’ winning game.
Then in mid-October, alumni returned for the Harker Harvest Festival, the school’s 64th annual Family & Alumni Picnic. More than 100 alumni attended the daylong event, held on the middle school campus. During the picnic there was a special area reserved for alumni, with a delicious barbecue. Many alumni also volunteered at the picnic, working in shifts at various booths.
Alumni at both events agreed that a fun time was had by all!
This article originally appeared in the winter 2014 Harker Quarterly.
In November parents of Harker’s most recent graduates assisted the alumni office in an annual tradition of assembling college care packages for current college freshmen. This year, 30 parents united to send an array of interesting items to the Class of 2014.
Among the products included in this year’s packages were friendly notes and well wishes from advisors, teachers and the class dean, as well as sweet and salty snacks. Goodies included Rice Krispies Treats, fruit snacks, granola bars, chocolate chip cookies, popcorn, Emergen-C, hot chocolate mix, candy, gum and lollipops. The packages were designed to give the former students a boost of encouragement just before their finals began, and help them finish out their first semesters away from home on a bright note.
Also in the packages were custom-designed gum packages with the message “Harker Alumni – We Stick Together,” custom alumni M&Ms and a bookmark printed with the words “The journey is never truly over, it just changed course,” courtesy of Harker’s librarians.
According to Karri Baker ’84, director of alumni relations, several Class of 2014 agents were instrumental in helping to get the care packages to the alumni’s university mailboxes.
“We wanted to let the Class of 2014 know that we are thinking of them and sending good thoughts their way. The care packages were assembled with love from parents of alumni and alumni volunteers,” Baker said, adding that she hopes the packages will encourage the 2014 alumni to stay connected with Harker through participation with the Alumni Association.
She urged alumni to “please come back and visit, or drop a line and let us know how you’re doing!”
This article originally appeared in the winter 2014 Harker Quarterly.
Last year, to honor the memory of beloved former faculty member Jason Berry, the upper school’s graduating class dedicated their senior gift to creating an orchard in his memory. Fast for- ward to this past fall and, on Nov. 19, Berry was honored again – with a bear statue donated in his name at the opening of the Orchard Garden in front of Dobbins Hall.
“This statue has been generously gifted to the school in memory of Jason Berry by the Class of 2014. The class also gifted the Orchard Garden in honor of the South Bay’s agricultural roots,” recalled Chris Nikoloff, head of school.
An initial tree-planting ceremony heralding the orchard took place in April, with many students participating, including Berry’s former advisees, soccer players he coached, English students he taught and members of the senior class.
Berry was an English teacher and athletics coach at Harker; his nickname, “Bear,” was coined by his close family and friends and quickly adopted by his students. He died suddenly on Aug. 24, 2013 of a pulmonary embolism resulting from a blood clot in his leg. A memorial was held Aug. 29, and family and friends filled nearby WestGate Church to say goodbye. Heartfelt memories of his childhood and early years as a teacher were shared; the loss to his family and the community was mourned.
This article originally appeared in the winter 2014 Harker Quarterly.
Editor’s note: This interview was conducted and translated by Spanish NHS member Sahana Narayanan, grade 11, with assistance from Abel Olivas, upper school Spanish teacher.
Daniel Kim ’09 recently gave an interview to the Spanish National Honor Society (SNHS) for the fall edition of its Spanish-language magazine, “Pórtico al mundo hispano (Gateway to the Hispanic World).” A former member of the SNHS, he spoke of his six visits to Latin America as part of a Christian medical team. Kim recently graduated from Harvard University and began his first year in a hybrid M.D./Ph.D. program at Yale University.
Sahana Narayanan: Tell us about the medical team with which you traveled to Latin America. How did you find this opportunity? Daniel Kim: On each of my trips, I went with a group called Medical Ministry International (MMI). It’s a Christian organization that provides free medical services to underprivileged communities while sharing with them MMI’s religious faith. Doctors spend their vacations volunteering at clinics. I found this program through a simple Google search. After finishing my second year at Harker, I was looking for an opportunity to improve my Spanish, explore the medical profession and cultivate my Christian faith.
SN: How did you help the medical team? DK: On my trips to Honduras and Peru, I served as an interpreter. I sat between doctor and patient, translating the patient’s symptoms and medical history from Spanish to English and the doctor’s suggestions and prescriptions from English to Spanish. On my most recent trip to Mexico, I had a slightly different job since, instead of providing medications, this team of doctors performed cataract removal surgery. I worked as a nurse. Using the formal commands I had learned in my Spanish classes, I prepared every patient for surgery. I learned how to sterilize the area around the eyes and to take out patients’ intravenous needles. I also learned how to pass the correct tools to the doctor during surgery, which was a great experience!
SN: Describe the economic situation of the patients. DK: In many cases, the patients and I were the same age, but our situations were very different. Instead of going to school, these patients often had to work in jobs such as driving taxis (or small cars used as taxis) and running stores. Many of the girls (especially in Honduras) had two or three kids. The most obvious and unfortunate problem I witnessed was the poor health in these communities. Either there was a dearth of adequate services or the services were too expensive.
SN: Why have you returned to Latin America so many times? DK: These experiences taught me that the society in which I live does not represent the daily lives of the majority of the world. (Well, I already knew that, but I had never faced it in such a concrete way.) Not only did I grasp the extent of the suffering in these countries, I also discovered that I could help alleviate some of it with my talents and medical knowledge. I came to decide two important things.
First of all, to return to these countries in the future as a doctor who can both treat patients and communicate with them in Spanish. Secondly, rather than just practice medicine – that is, instead of just treating individual patients – I resolved to do scientific research to treat entire populations on a world scale.
Using my interdisciplinary specialization, I hope to find efficient and economical methods to combat the most serious diseases in the world. That’s why I ultimately chose to follow a hybrid M.D./ Ph.D. program at Yale.
SN: Of all your travels, which one has been the most memorable? Why? DK: The Latin American culture I experienced struck me as very communal, unlike the culture of independence of the United States. Every night, the folks living in these cities would come to plazas to enjoy each other’s company. Some cities had two plazas, one for youth and the other for adults. After completing our work, we’d go out to eat authentic cuisine and then head to the plaza to delve more deeply into the culture (and to eat ice cream!).
My favorite memory takes place in one of these plazas. In Honduras, the secondary school in the city organized a dance performance at a plaza to thank our medical team, which was a very kind gesture. Suddenly the students stopped dancing and started pulling me onto the stage. They wanted me to dance! I was terrified of the attention and the impending embarrassment, but I didn’t want to disrespect the community. Since I felt I had no other choice, I finally started dancing, imitating what I had seen online. I did the gestures for “YMCA,” “the shopping cart,” the “sprinkler,” and I also sang “Domo arigato Mr. Roboto.” The time flew by!
SN: I understand that by the end of your AP Spanish Language course, you spoke the language very well. Did your travels to Latin America improve your Spanish even further? DK: My Spanish improved in a very specific way. I broadened certain vocabulary, such as words and expressions necessary for speaking about the human body, diseases and medicine. Moreover, I got to practice my formal commands and the present subjunctive (constructions such as “We recommend that you …”) as well as other simple tenses. Ironically, though, I think that my conversational Spanish actually got worse, because I didn’t have to generate the content of my conversations. I just translated the words spoken by the doctor and the patient. I’d also say that I didn’t practice many constructions commonly used in writing, which is why I don’t think I improved in the more complex aspects of the language. However, during my last trip, I engaged in more conversations and generally had more flexibility in terms of how I spent my time at the clinic.
SN: On your last trip to Mexico, your sister, Angela, a sophomore at Harker, joined you. Why, and how was the shared experience of living in Mexico? DK: Angela joined me because she wanted to practice her Spanish, and she wanted to get a sense of whether she had an interest in medicine. In the Mexican clinic, she did a job similar to mine. She helped the nurses and patients prepare before each surgery, and she spoke with the patients during their free time and asked them questions about their lives. I loved working with my sister at the clinic, because in my previous trips, I felt a bit lonely, a feeling heightened perhaps by the fact that other members of the medical team often brought friends and family along while I mostly traveled alone. The presence of my sister in Mexico was a source of comfort for me.
SN: Did your perspectives on Latin America change? DK: For the first time in my life, I was a member of the minority. There were no other Asian people either in the local population or on the actual medical team. From this strange vantage point, I was able study the issue of diversity in depth, and I was able to observe how certain Latin American countries treat foreigners.
I noticed that every Latin American I met was fascinated by the fact that I was Asian, but that fascination was expressed differently depending on the region. The Peruvians and Mexicans asked me about my culture, often wanting to be friends on Facebook. One time, a Peruvian girl even asked me out (although I very kindly declined). Many of these folks were often familiar with [Korean pop] groups, and they wanted me to speak Korean to them. In Honduras, on the other hand, I was frequently shunned. I heard more racial insults there than in the other Latin American countries. To the native Hondurans, I was the strange “Chinese guy” who could speak Spanish. However, for the Peruvians and Mexicans, I was their new Korean friend who could speak Spanish and Korean, which fascinated them. I found these differences intriguing.
SN: Do you have any advice for Harker students wanting to go on this type of Latin American trip? DK: Finding these types of opportunities is easy, so the most important thing is to examine your motivation for traveling. Why do you want to travel? If you want to help the world, practice your Spanish and explore medicine as a career, of course you should do it! But if your primary motivation is to build your resume to get into college, I’d suggest you reconsider. I believe there should be a more genuine reason for traveling so that the experience has a lasting impact on your life and you don’t feel that you’re merely tolerating the time you’re spending in the country. Instead, may your stay be like a Latin American plaza, an opportunity to meet the people of Latin America and to develop a genuine relationship with them.
This article originally appeared in the winter 2014 Harker Quarterly.
When Karri Sakai Baker ’84 – an alumna, Harker parent and interim director of alumni relations – queried fellow alumni on why they decided to send their own children to Harker, she didn’t expect to receive such an outpouring of replies. Alumni with children who are students at all four campuses – from preschool to upper school – eagerly responded, with nostalgic photos and reflections.
Baker said many of her fondest childhood memories, along with several lifelong friendships, came from Harker. She even met her husband, Matt Baker ’83, at the celebration of Harker’s 100th year anniversary.
“The best part about looking for schools with a spouse who is also a Harker alum is that your experiences and expectations are aligned. For us, Harker was the only clear choice,” she said, adding that her daughters, Brooke, grade 4, and Maya, grade 2, have been at Harker since kindergarten. “For Matt and me, returning to Harker with our children has really completed the circle,” she added.
Read on as many alumni relive their best memories of Harker and then flash forward to today to discuss what makes the school so special for their children. And, enjoy the fun photos taken during their time at Harker, juxtaposed with those of their children, currently attending.
Rajiv Das ’79, a graduate of Harker’s middle school, provided us with his school picture as well as that of his daughter, Reiya, who is currently in grade 7.
Kristin Scarpace Giammona ’81 is Harker’s elementary division head. She is also a former Harker teacher. But long before that, she was a Harker student and is thrilled that her daughter, Mia, grade 10, is also able to “receive a strong foundation in academics, participate in a wide variety of activities and make lifelong friends” at Harker.
Giammona said that although Harker has many more students now than it did when she attended – and also has added an upper school and a preschool – at its roots, “Harker is the same school I attended in the 1970s and 1980s.”
Jeff Rogers ’84 reported that, prior to making the decision to send his daughter, Vivian, K, to Harker, he went through a somewhat formal process, evaluating approximately a dozen schools on a range of criteria.
After touring a number of schools and spending time in the classrooms, observing and talking to teachers and staff, “The Harker School was the standout,” he said.
For him, the deciding factors included the combination of the school’s faculty, the attention to proper class placement and the wide range of extracurricular activities available on campus. “Clearly the school has grown in size, the facilities have improved and the school has further distinguished itself academically, but what speaks to me are the things that haven’t changed. It’s great to know that many faculty members have made their careers at the school, that the summer reading program remains and to see staff I know on campus. These are the people and programs that made a difference in my life and it’s great to know my daughter will have a similar experience,” he said.
Elise Tremba Schwartz Robichaud ’84 (Jonathan, grade 10; Kurt, grade 11) is a longtime member of the Harker community, both as an alumna and as a grade 3 teacher at the lower school, where she has worked for many years. Currently, she is enjoying hosting a foreign exchange student, Ray Song, who is from Shanghai, China, and attends Harker’s upper school as a sophomore.
“Ray joined our family in August and we have offered to keep him for the rest of high school. Last year was his first year at Harker and in America. Ray is currently the sophomore class treasurer, and he plays club volleyball with my boys,” said Robichaud.
“I could go on and on about my love for the school. It was always my dream to teach here, and it just feels like home for me,” she added.
Lisa Sharon Morel ’80 submitted an old school photo, as well as current shots of her children, Joel, grade 7, and Jessica, grade 3.
Kristin Marlow Quintin ’84 (Emma, grade 3; Cooper, K) shared a photo of herself that was taken in grade 3, the same grade her daughter, Emma, is currently in. Quintin said that she loves the “family feel” of Harker.
“My children love the after-school program the best, the classes they go to and the staff. They love the teachers, and say they are kind and respectful. Emma says that dance and art are ‘so awesome.’ She has really enjoyed the Eagle Buddies program this year. Cooper is enjoying making friends, the playground and the lunches. As most children, they don’t want to come home and I cannot pick them up late enough!” she said.
Alexander Stojanovic ’82, and his daughter Mina, grade 7, submitted both classroom and team photos taken from their time at Harker. Alexander’s brother, Nikola Stojanovic ’85 (Sofia Sahar, grade 2), also attended Harker, and their daughters are delighted to attend Harker together.
Loren Due ’85 stressed that he wanted his son, Kai, grade 5, to have the same education and school experience he received growing up. “I have always felt Harker was a second home for me and wanted my son to feel the same,” he said.
“I am very excited [for Kai to be at Harker] and feel a sense of déjà vu. Some of my teachers are still present. It feels like I never left. Some of my classmates have children at Harker and now we get to experience together what our parents felt. I feel like we are completing the circle and it feels good,” he said.
Tiffany Kitamura ’86 submitted a photo that was taken of her in grade 1. She said she and her husband selected Harker as their first choice for their children (Alexis Nishimura, grade 4; Kai Nishimura, K) due to the great experiences she had at the school.
“It provided me with a sound academic background, many choices of fine arts and sports, and lifelong friendships. I remembered fondly that the teachers really cared for the students. Harker provided a nurturing and supportive learning environment, and that’s what I wanted for my [children]. It’s amazing to see many familiar faces still at Harker and know that they love their jobs,” she said.
“Alexis loves her teachers and all the staff members. Her favorite part of Harker is language arts, library, field trips and after-school playtime. Kai loves his kindergarten year so far. He enjoys the after-school ‘no place like space,’ mastering the monkey bars, and playing outside. He’s thrilled to be at the same school as his big sister,” she enthused, adding, “I’m very proud to have my children attend my alma mater!”
Kevin Sakai ’86 said he selected Harker for his son (Ryan, K) because he wanted to give him the opportunity to grow and be challenged in safe and comfortable environment. “When I walked on the Harker campus and talked to the staff, it just felt right,” he recalled.
As for Ryan, he said the best thing about kindergarten is “my friends and the teachers.” Plus, he added, “I like getting to check a book out of the library.”
Michelle Nguyen ’87 (Julia Ernsting, grade 2) sent in a photo that was taken of her when she was in grade 4 at Harker. “When I look back at my time at Harker, I remember a time filled with wonderful teachers who would push me to try harder [and] think critically, and who taught me the discipline to carry things through. I remember leaving Harker confidence in myself. That is what I wanted for my daughter – not only an excellent education and ability to think critically, but also the development of confidence in herself to think creatively,” she said.
“I remember going to Mr. Nichols’ office to get chocolate chip cookies, which he would leave out for hungry students. Now, when Harker celebrates Mr. Nichols’ birthday with chocolate chip cookies, it makes me smile. When Julia puts on her uniform with the navy skirt and socks, I remember doing the same,” added Nguyen.
Julia said, “I love everything about Harker. My favorite things are science – because we get to do fun experiments like learning about water condensation, vapor and water wheels – and math is fun because our teacher makes us think. I love swimming in P.E. The best thing about Harker are my friends.”
Matt Ortiz ’88 submitted photos of himself when he was in grade 3 and his son, Dominic, currently in grade 3.
Marissa Lucketti ’90, Harker’s human resources manager, enjoys working at Harker and sending her son, Enzo, grade 3, to Harker as well. She sent in photos of herself and her son, both taken in grade 3.
“I love that Harker has grown in size. I can’t believe there are four campuses! I also love knowing that there are faculty and staff who were working here when I was a student. Enzo has had my second grade teacher (Mrs. Hickey) as a substitute from time to time, and he loves knowing that she taught me!” she said.
Jennifer Cady Logan ’90 (Jackson, grade 1) was having a fun time rummaging through her old Harker photos when she came upon a class picture of herself in current lower school head Sarah Leonard’s kindergarten classroom.
“It feels very special to have Jackson at the same school that I attended! Not only did I attend but Jackson’s uncle and two aunts also attended, so it is now a family affair. We can’t wait for Jackson’s little brother, Declan, to be old enough to come. Jackson feels special, too, because some of the same teachers and staff are still there from when I attended; he feels protected and looked after,” said Logan.
“We are so happy we took the time to look at Harker as a possibility for Jackson and Declan. Every child has different needs, and the resources and dedication to the child’s growth in terms of academics, social experiences, breadth of exposure to new things and caring staff has made Jackson say on the first day of both kindergarten and first grade that he had ‘the best day ever, Mom!’”
Ti Pence ’91 sent in photos of himself, his brother, Tim Pence ’93, and his son, Kuga, grade 3.
Shannon Self ’91 sent in photographs of herself and her daughter, Sabrina, grade 2.“I was in the second grade from 1984-85 and Sabrina is in grade 2 now … exactly 30 years later!” she exclaimed.
Class agent Amanda Mathias Bonomi ’92 (Eliana, K; Daniela, preschool) loves hearing about her young daughters’ happenings at Harker. Eliana’s favorite thing about kindergarten Daniela Bonomi is “the playground and monkey bars,” while her sister, 3-year-old Daniela, is into “the playground and Miss Mara’s music and movement class.”
Bonomi said she was really excited to find a photo that was taken of herself back in grade 1.
“I chose Harker for my daughters because it’s the right fit for my girls and our family. Harker clearly excels in academics, but is also able to give the girls so many opportunities they would not be able to get elsewhere. The STEM lab and farm at the preschool are incredible. The staff is exceptional. The kindergartners are able to experience everything from learning Hindi and yoga to cheerleading and soccer to cooking and storytelling. Nowhere else offers these opportunities all in one place,” said Bonomi, noting that she also loves that so many people from her Harker days are still at the school. “Going back to Harker truly feels like being a part of a family to me.”
Bonomi said her girls are thrilled with school. “Not only do they love what they do, but the things they are learning are amazing. They soak it all in. They both ask me to pick them up later so they can spend more time playing at Harker with their friends and doing activities. This makes me know my husband and I made the right choice in choosing Harker for the girls.”
The Crook family has the distinction of having a presence on all four of Harker’s campuses. Josh Crook ’93 explained that his wife, Amanda, works at the preschool, their eldest son (Anthony DeVincenzi, grade 10) is at the upper school, and their other two children (Griffin, grade 7; Emma, grade 5) attend the middle and lower schools (making for a busy morning drop off schedule!). Previously, Amanda worked at Harker’s lower school as a BEST staffer.
Crook shared photos of himself when he was in the fifth and seventh grades – the very same years Emma and Griffin currently attend. Both he and his wife said they loved being a part of the Harker community and the nurturing education they received at the school.
“I really get a kick out of seeing my children having the privilege of learning from some of the great teachers I had, and even some of my former classmates,” said Crook.
Stephanie Hayhurst Mehra ’94 will never forget what her 3-year-old daughter, Aria, told her on her first day at Harker Preschool.
“Aria asked me if we are going to the pretty school today. … I told her it’s called preschool. And she said, ‘Well, OK, we can call it preschool, but it is also very pretty.’”
And since day one Aria’s enthusiasm for preschool has not waned.
“It’s a surreal experience to watch Aria thrive in a place that once taught me so much. It’s also a bit frightening to watch your precious child navigate the world without you. She is becoming an independent being. Ultimately, I want her first steps outside of the safety of our family cocoon to be a nurturing, positive experience,” said Mehra.
Peter Noonan ’03 managed to dig up an old photograph of himself taken in kindergarten – the same grade as his son, Kaiden. “I loved attending Harker. The education is unbeatable, the friendships I made last forever, and the teachers truly embrace their time here. That’s a hard combination to beat these days and why we chose Harker for Kaiden. When, decades later, you can walk on campus and see teachers you had, coaches you worked with, and administrators still at Harker, you know it’s more than a great school, it’s a community of friends and family,” he said.