Harker’s first Eagle Buddies event of the year was held at the lower school recently, uniting grades 3 and 10, who had previously only corresponded via letters and pictures.
That all changed when, just before noon on Oct. 3, the third graders assembled on the blacktop at the Bucknall campus, eagerly awaiting the arrival of their sophomore Eagle Buddies.
Clad in their brand new Eagle Buddies polo shirts, and holding signs indicative of their homerooms so that the upper school students could find them, the third graders were overjoyed to finally meet their big pals in person. Then all the students ate lunch together on the main field and were free to play sports (including some “getting-to-know-you” games), work on craft tables located at the edges of the turf, or simply relax for some free play.
Following closing remarks out on the Rincon field, the buddies said goodbye to one another. The sophomores returned to the upper school campus and the third graders went on with their day. But the buddies will continue to follow one another and bond over the course of the next several years in the successful mentoring program.
“Before I first met my eagle buddy, Maria, I was really nervous but excited at the same time,” said big buddy Shannon Richardson. “She was really sweet and somewhat quiet, which is expected from a third grader. We talked about the things she enjoyed most like tennis and reading. For me, being at the lower school again and hearing stories about it brought back so many happy memories. I miss those times so much now; if only we had nap time in high school! While we talked we ate and made friendship bracelets. My Eagle Buddies experience was definitely an enjoyable one and I can’t wait to see her again.”
“We were so excited to see the children become acquainted with their new buddies!” said Ken Allen, the lower school’s dean of students. He noted that upcoming Eagle Buddies events for these two grades will include a pajama day, service project and book drive. They will also continue to correspond via Thanksgiving, Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day cards.
And, according to Carol Zink, an upper school history teacher who helps coordinate the Eagle Buddies program, there will be a Clown Day for juniors and their grade 4 buddies in January, held at the upper school gymnasium.
Look for continued coverage of Eagle Buddies events in Harker News Online!
This past summer, Shivani (grade 9) and Mohan (grade 6) Awasthi had the opportunity to visit with India’s president, Shri Pranab Mukherjee, at his home in New Delhi. During the meeting the Harker siblings presented a bouquet of flowers to the president and addressed him in Hindi. They also told him about Harker and how much they enjoy attending the school.
Mukherjee assumed office as the 13th president of India on July 25, 2012, crowning a political career of more than five decades of service in the country, working in both the government and parliament.
This past week, a Harker cross country runner set a new course record, and the girls golf team posted the best score of any girls golf team in Harker’s history. Here are the scores and great performances from the first week of October:
Cross Country:
At the first WBAL cross country meet of the year, Corey Gonzales, grade 11, avenged the narrow defeat he suffered on that same course last year by setting a new course record of 14:47.5. In the very next race, freshman Niki Iyer won the 60m. Iyer’s winning time of 17:10.0 missed the course record by a single second. Senior Claudia Tischler ran her best race of the year, finishing in fifth place with an time of 18:08.
Girls Tennis:
Girls tennis defeated league rival Sacred Heart Prep this past Tuesday by a score of 4-3 to improve their record to 5-1 overall and 1-0 in league play. Dora Tzeng grade 12, Izzy Gross, grade 1o, Sahithya Prakash,grade 12, and Arden Hu, grade 11, all won their singles matches. Two days later, the girls dropped their contest against state power Menlo, with Tzeng’s victory in her singles match serving as Harker’s only win of the day. This week, the girls head to play Crystal on the road and then return home to host Castilleja.
Girls Volleyball:
Both the junior varsity and varsity squads fell just shy of defeating Sacred Heart last Tuesday. Divya Kalidindi, grade 12, had 20 kills in varsity’s loss. The varsity team rebounded against Castilleja on Thursday, winning in five sets. They hit the road this week to face off against Priory and Menlo.
Water Polo:
Down four goals against Wilcox last Tuesday, the boys rallied back but ultimately came up short, dropping the game 14-12. Eric Holt, grade 11, scored five goals in the game. Karan Kurbur, grade 12, scored four. Billy Bloomquist, grade 11, scored two, and Jeremy Binkley, also grade 11, added a goal as well. The boys then headed to the Sobrato Tournament for the weekend, where they won one game and dropped two. The team’s record now stands at 5-9 overall. They start this week off against Cupertino.
The girls, meanwhile, dropped their game to Wilcox on Tuesday, 11-7, despite three goals from senior Anne Levine and more from Delaney Martin, grade 11, Yasemin Narin, grade 10, and Sheridan Tobin, grade 11. On Thursday, the girls eked out a 5-4 win against Monta Vista, led by Martin’s and junior Anushka Das’ two goals apiece.
Girls Golf:
The girls posted the best score ever for a Harker girls golf team this past Friday in a 199-211 loss to Sacred Heart Prep at Los Lagos. It took the best performance of any team in the league this season for Sacred Heart Prep to pull out a win and take sole possession of second place in the WBAL. A red-hot Kristine Lin, grade 12, earned her sixth medalist honors in as many matches, and Daphne Liang, grade 10, drained a 40-foot put on the ninth hole to make par. Harker is currently in third place in the WBAL with a 3-3 record.
Football:
Varsity football has its senior night this Friday against Livermore Valley Prep at 7 p.m.
This article originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
Good morning. I would like to welcome the entire community, and in particular the classes of 2017, 2016, 2015 and 2014 to this year’s matriculation ceremony, a tradition that we as a community have practiced since the inaugural year of the upper school in 1998. I would also like to dedicate today’s ceremony to the memory and example of Jason Berry. The original theme of my talk was gratitude, which I believe still fits, as I am sure Mr. Berry would want us to be grateful for what we have and those who surround us. He would want us to have the best year possible.
In the early years of the upper school, when we were a smaller school, we bused the entire community to Villa Montalvo and in that lovely setting committed ourselves to the values expressed in the matriculation oath. Now we take the matriculation oath here, in what is affectionately known as the quad, tying together the values of the oath and the campus where we will honor those values.
The matriculation oath itself, though born with the upper school in 1998, reflects values dear to The Harker School since its founding by Frank Cramer in 1893 as Manzanita Hall. Lifelong learning, well-rounded programs, character and community have been the school’s mission since its beginning. We owe our gratitude to all of the students, teachers, staff and administrators who dedicated themselves to this school and its values over its long history. We are a reflection of their work; we hope to be what they hoped for; we owe it to them to carry the promise forward.
Today I am grateful for a video on gratitude sent to me by Harker parent Claude Cartee. The creator of the video, Dennis Prager, states that both goodness and happiness depend upon gratitude. He says that there has never been an ungrateful happy person in the history of humankind. By this logic it may be safe to assume that there has never been an ungrateful good person as well. We can only know this a priori of course. I am grateful I finally had an opportunity to use the phrase “a priori” in a speech.
I am also grateful for the opportunity I had this summer to travel to Tanzania with 11 wonderful students – Alyssa, Logan, Jonathan, Monica, Namrata, Lea, Shazdeh, Kenny, Parth, Raymond, Callie – and three adults – Dr. Dhoran, Dr. Kamins, and our own Ms. Anita Chetty, the true visionary of the trip. To commemorate the trip I am wearing my Tanzanian tie, a gift from the students, sporting the country’s colors, and made with small beads in the style of the Masai tribe’s traditional handicrafts. Allow me to indulge in a few inside jokes: the journalism jeep by far had the most swag; there were numerous Parth sightings; we found a Chipotle in Arusha; a leopard is difficult to “spot”; some of the big cats were “lyin’” around on the Serengeti.
This was a groundbreaking trip for Harker in many ways. It was the school’s first trip to sub-Saharan Africa, and the half-day eye clinic with the Masai tribe was our first direct service in Africa. 2013 saw another groundbreaking trip: the business and entrepreneurial trip to India. Harker students and faculty, with trips like these, are carrying on a long tradition of global citizenship, initiated in 1992 with the trailblazing exchange between the Tamagawa School in Tokyo, Japan, and The Harker School. Harker students were on five continents in this past summer alone, realizing the vision of fostering global citizenship that longtime head of school and current board chair Diana Nichols had for many decades.
I am grateful for witnessing our students’ willingness to serve during the eye clinic for the Masai villagers. Many Masai showed up to be tested for and potentially receive eye glasses that improved their near vision. We had Masai elders attend who most likely never had an eye exam or even a health exam, outside of what their traditional herbalist could offer. At the end of the clinic the elders of the Masai tribe were gathering in front of the school wearing their glasses. One 80-year-old grandmother sported a black pair of glasses with the word “sexy” written on the frame. It was heartwarming to watch our students set up their stations and get to work without complaint, like they had been working for the U.N. for years. The students also donated 15 goats to the village.
This same sense of service drove the students to raise funds to purchase books and deliver them to a village school outside Arusha. We met with the principal and the board chair of the school on a Saturday to give them the books. The principal said the books will propel his school to new heights. In a world where we can download “Moby Dick” on our cell phones while waiting in the grocery line, his students have just one book per 17 students. The school of almost a thousand students has just 14 teachers. Classes have close to 100 students in them.
The principal wanted to pass on a message to our students. He urged Harker students to take full advantage of their educational opportunities, to listen to their teachers and work hard. I deliver his message not because I doubt you will follow it or because I think you need reminding of the principal’s advice. I repeat his message for him, because I know that he would want to know that we have true gratitude for the rich academic and personal experience this community offers and that we do not take it for granted. I believe we owe it to him and his students to remind ourselves to be grateful for all we have.
This talk is perhaps not much more than the equivalent of what we used to hear from our parents at dinner: eat your vegetables because they are starving in Africa. I guess I am saying appreciate your books, your eyesight, your community, because not everyone is as fortunate as we are. There is one difference though, and that is the following: now we are hearing the same advice from real people who care that we care, and whom our students have directly met due to our global outreach.
Thich Nhat Hanh, the Vietnamese Zen master, has said that we do not stop to be mindful of the miracle of our eyes, our ability to walk, our loved ones around us. I have often said that the world isn’t looking for more smart, evil people. The parts of our mission that speak to kindness, respect and global citizenship are as important as any, and our students are reflecting these values locally and globally every day. But it starts with gratitude, and that is what I wish for you this year. Thank you.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
This past summer 11 biology Harker history by embarking on an educational first for the school: a trip to Tanzania. Armed with a “world as their classroom” mentality, the group set off for the 10-day groundbreaking trip, called “One Health in Tanzania,” on July 24.
The Tanzanian adventure was the brainchild of upper school science department chair Anita Chetty, who had spent years planning and researching the trip. Head of School Chris Nikoloff joined Chetty in supervising the group of students.
Also serving as chaperones were Dr. Murali Daran and Dr. Alexandra Kamins. Daran (Lea, grade 12; Rohan, grade 10) is a cardiologist and has done extensive medical charitable work in places like the Dominican Republic. Besides serving as the group’s “doctor- on-call,” he inspired the students with a talk on his charitable work. Kamins is a recent graduate from the University of Cambridge whose doctoral work was in Ghana. She has also been on several study programs in Africa; her experiences provided essential support when collaborating on the curriculum with Chetty.
“I designed the trip as though it were a short, college-level type course,” said Chetty, explaining that the trip, while filled with great sights, was not primarily about sightseeing. “The focus was on the educational curriculum … and I was so impressed at how the students rose to that challenge.”
In fact, every aspect of the trip was infused with an opportunity for learning, from game-drives filled with biology lessons to visiting reserves and meeting with health professionals. One highlight was learning firsthand about the current AIDS epidemic in Tanzania. The situation became real to students as they met with health professionals, including a gynecologist and nurse at an AIDS clinic.
Another trip highlight was visiting with the Masai tribe, when the students had the opportunity to personally donate toys to a local village school. It was an eye-opening experience for journalism student Jonathan Dai, grade 10.
“The tribe treated us like family and welcomed us into their homes and daily lives. We played games with their kids, herded goats and cattle, and even played a soccer game against the adult male tribe members,” he recalled.
While visiting with the Masai, students set up an eye clinic, testing tribe members’ eyes and handing out prescription eye glasses they had brought over with them for that purpose.
“One of the most influential moments for me was visiting the Masai. On a walk to and from the lake they tried to teach us some of their native language. For example, they taught us how to count and some basic phrases. Regardless of the fact that neither of us spoke the others’ languages we managed to communicate and bonded really quickly, which was an amazing experience,” recalled Alyssa Amick, grade 11.
Namrata Vakkalagadda, grade 12, said that a very personal memory for her was learning beading from a village tribe healer. “Even though we had an obvious language barrier, the connection between us was almost immediate. She welcomed my curiosity with open arms and continued to patiently guide my hands and hand me beads, until I created a bracelet which I was able to keep for myself. This memento of mine I think might be one that is dearest to me, because I created it with a member of the Masai community and it was a connection that was personal between the two of us.”
The Tanzania trip was such a success that plans are already in the works for another one next summer. In addition to giving the gift of sight by providing eyeglasses, Chetty is also collecting money to buy and bring desperately needed textbooks to the Tanzanian public schools.
“There is nothing like learning that is directly experienced, whether educational or philanthropic,” said Chetty.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
Jason Berry, English teacher and athletics coach at The Harker School, died suddenly on Sat., Aug. 24 of a pulmonary embolism resulting from a blood clot in his leg. A memorial was held Aug. 29 and family and friends nearly 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.
A large group, many of whom were alumni, then moved to Harker’s Saratoga campus for a reception. Family members joined the group shortly after it started, and Head of School Chris Nikoloff as well as two of Berry’s colleagues addressed the group very briefly, followed by more memories exchanged, and more tears shed for the life cut short.
Born in New Hampshire and highly regarded as a teacher by his students during his five-year run at Harker, Berry wrote as a critic during his time as a member of the American College Theatre Festival and was honored for Excellence in Teaching by the Clemson University PanHellenic Council. The Harker Class of 2012 selected him as the faculty speaker for the 2012 baccalaureate ceremony, during which he said to the soon-to-be graduates, “Be who you want to be, and if that doesn’t agree with you, then find, once again, your center, your inner voice; don’t settle for an imitation of yourself. Bend the rules, but try not to break them.”
During his high school years, Berry was a decorated All-American soccer player, an experience he later applied at Harker as a head coach of the girls soccer team, leading the team to record seasons during the 2011-12 and 2012-13 school years.
As a New England native, Berry described himself as a “rabid” follower of the New England Patriots, Boston Red Sox, Boston Celtics and Boston Bruins sports teams.
“Jason’s life reflected his wise counsel, and he was always, authentically, himself,” said Nikoloff. “He impacted many with his wisdom, wit and warmth, and will be deeply missed.”
In the Harker community, Berry is survived by his wife, MaryEllis Deacon, whom he married in June, and his in-laws, Butch and Jane Keller.
Add your thoughts to others’ at Jason Berry’s memorial page: http://berrymemories.com/; read more about the memorial at the Winged Post: http://bit.ly/146UUaj; and see more photos at Harker News Online: http://bit.ly/1foRmQr.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
Several upper school students traveled to Switzerland in June to meet with their friends at Collège de Gambach, practice their French and explore the country’s beautiful scenery and culture. Their first day at Collège de Gambach consisted of a tour of the campus and a board game with German and French speakers.
One of the group’s favorite stops was the Cailler Chocolate factory, where they learned about the history of chocolate and how it is made. They also sampled a variety of cocoa beans and, as expected, the many varieties of chocolate made by the company.
Later, in Lausanne, the students boarded a steamboat to Vevey, where the food company Nestlé is headquartered. There, they visited the Alimentarium, a cooking museum where the students learned about the history of food preparation, cooking utensils and even table manners. Their final day at Collège de Gambach was spent eating lunch and enjoying time with their Swiss friends.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
This year’s upper school summer adventure to Japan had students visiting many of the country’s famous landmarks and historical sites. During their first couple of days, the students headed to the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima to hear an account from a person who survived the first atomic bombing; they later visited Miyajima to enjoy the scenery and wildlife.
After disembarking the bullet train in Kyoto, the students had a great time in the former Japanese capital, spending the night at a temple and attending a morning prayer session. While in Kyoto, they visited a number of famous temples, including the Golden Pavilion, and interacted with the locals in Japanese.
During their visit to Harker’s sister school, Tamagawa Academy in Tokyo, the students met their host buddies for the first time and began their homestays. After a few days of fun and bonding with their Tamagawa buddies, the students said their goodbyes and headed home.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
From late July to early August, upper school students traveled to Costa Rica to create and present research projects at the University of Georgia’s Costa Rica campus at San Luis. The students spent their time observing local wildlife in the field and doing lab work on their findings. Some of the topics students researched included intra-species bird calls, hermit crab activity and plankton diversity.
The students later presented the results of their research to an appreciative audience at a symposium held at the UGA campus. During breaks from their research, the students went to a science fair being held at a local elementary school, went ziplining over the Costa Rican cloud forest, visited a bat jungle and went rafting.
Congrats to five singers who have earned spots in the prestigious American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) Coastal Region Honor Choir! With more than 300 singers auditioning, all five Harker singers were named to the choir. Named to the mixed choir was Ishanya Anthapur, grade 11 (alto 2). Named to the women’s choir were: Katie Chung, grade 10 (soprano 2); Maya Nandakumar, grade 11 (alto 2); Sahanna Narayan, grade 10 (soprano 1); Simran Singh, grade 11 (alto 1).
The number indicates what part – high alto or soprano (1) or low alto or soprano (2) – each girl will sing in the choir at its performance Nov. 23, 2 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Palo Alto. Each girl’s audition included an Italian art song (40 points), tonal memory (25 points), sight reading (20 points), and scales and triads (15 points).
“It is range and voice quality that determines their placement into a voice part,” noted Susan Nace, a Harker choir director at the upper school. The girls’ audition will next be measured against other qualifiers from the state to determine who goes on to the state honor choir. Please congratulate these girls when you see them!