This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
Summer Water Polo Camp Focuses on Fun and Fundamentals of the Sport
Harker’s summer water polo camp, held in late June, offered Bay Area students in grades 4-8 the chance to get a comprehensive introduction to the sport in a fun, supportive environment.
“It’s good for the kids to come out and play and it’s helping our sport grow,” said Allie Lamb, the Harker water polo coach who ran the camp with Ted Ujifusa, who also coaches at Harker. “It’s kind of a small sport, so the more kids we can get started early and young, the better it’ll be when they get into high school.”
Because most of the students at the camp were new to the sport, the camp focused on basic skills such as eggbeater kicking, moving through the water, passing and shooting. Each day of the camp highlighted a new skill.
Good, Tough, Fun Basketball Camp Breaks Down Drills to Help Players Work as a Team
Harker’s basketball camp knitted together drills, five-on-fives and skills games to best engage students. The camp had two sessions per day – a morning session for boys in grades 6-9 and an afternoon coed session for grades 4-8 – and was run by Harker varsity basketball coach Mark Collins, who spent 10 years in Denmark as a professional player and six years as the director of the Golden State Warriors’ camp.
Collins said the main goal of the camp was to equip students with the skills they can practice at home and elsewhere in order to continue improving after camp is over. “They’re not going to get so much better in a weeklong camp,” he said. “But if they carry these skills to their homes and to their other teams and to their free plan and other recreational centers and do these skills, they will get better.”
Fundamentals – and Fun – All the Rage at Harker’s Summer Volleyball Camp
Harker’s summer volleyball camp returned the week of July 15, offering instruction from experienced, top-level coaches to students in grades 4-9. The camp catered to various skill levels, first grouping students by age and grade, and later moving students to different groups depending on their levels of experience. Each day began with warm-ups, with students going through drills for various skills, and each session ended with team play.
The main purpose of the camp is, first of all, for the kids to have fun, said Dan Molin, Harker’s upper school athletic director and one of the coaches running the camp. “We want them to come here and enjoy themselves and improve in every skill of volleyball, from offense to defense, passing, setting, hitting, digging, blocking and pingpong sets.”
Harker’s Wrestling Camp Helps Students from Around the Area to Improve Mat and Life Skills
Harker’s new wrestling camp, run by longtime Harker coach Karriem Stinson, gave students in grades 6-12 a solid foundation for their future endeavors in the sport.
“We try to show everyone the same moves and we’re trying to keep it basic … because we think basic wins,” said Stinson, who is also the middle and lower schools’ assistant athletic director.
A typical day at the camp focused first on basic techniques and positioning; then wrestlers moved on to situational drills emphasizing escapes, stand-ups and breakdowns. The final portion of the day allowed the students to practice the skills they’d learned with their classmates.
Summer Students Get Fitwith TRX Training Program
A new addition to Harker’s summer sports program this year, the TRX training camp introduced students to the TRX suspension training system, which builds strength, flexibility and core stability by using the trainer’s body weight. This unique feature makes it accessible to many people. “Anybody, from 5 years old all the way to seniors, can work with it,” said Karriem Stinson, Harker’s head wrestling coach and assistant athletic director at the lower and middle schools.
Stinson, who is a certified TRX trainer, said that TRX is a good alternative for people who are not comfortable exercising with weights. “It’s a fun apparatus that drives you to get stronger,” he said. He also noticed that after working with the TRX system, students had an easier time doing certain exercises such as planks, remarking, “It’s been amazing to watch.”
Soccer Camp Returns forAnother Successful Year
Harker’s summer soccer camp enjoyed another successful year, with students from many different skill levels picking up new techniques and honing those they had already acquired. The camp was broken up into three weeklong sessions, one week in June and two weeks in July. Each day started off with agility and balance warm-ups, combined with fun activities devised by the coaching staff. Students then headed off into various stations, each focusing on a key soccer skill such as passing, receiving and finishing. In addition, a new move was introduced each day of the camp for the students to learn and practice.
Although competition is an important aspect of the camp, head coach Shaun Tsakiris said the main objective was to ensure students had fun and wanted to return. “We make sure that before the season starts, before the camp starts, the coaching staff gets together and makes it an enjoyable place,” he said.
Young Gridiron Enthusiasts Have Fun at Junior Eagle Football Camp
In late July, football enthusiasts in grades 6-8 congregated at Davis Field at the upper school campus for the three-day Junior Eagle Football Camp, directed by Harker’s head football coach, Ron Forbes. Each day, students worked on speed and agility drills, learned and practiced skills unique to different positions and enjoyed team games at the end of each session.
Attendees received individual coaching at all positions from the experienced and knowledgeable coaching staff and certified sports medicine staff were on hand for the entire duration of the camp.
Students Learn and Develop Swimming Techniques at SwimSchool
Harker’s summer swim school offered individual instruction to swimmers of all ages looking to improve on their aquatic abilities. The school offered individual and group lessons to people of all levels of experience, from those who are stepping into the water for the first time to experienced swimmers looking for an edge in competition.
Katherine Dow, grade 5, said the camp was “fun. We do laps and timing and then we build rafts at the end and try to race each other.” She also mentioned that she noticed an overall improvement in her swimming and would attend the swim school again. Katherine’s sister, Suzanne, grade 2, also enjoyed the camp and learned how to do flip turns and freestyle swimming.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
Over the summer Nilisha Baid, grade 5, got an award from the Kohl’s Cares program for her exceptional community service work.
Over much of the previous school year, Baid worked with a refugee family from Congo. Along with her Girl Scouts troop, Baid tutored and mentored the family, who had eight children. Many of the kids had little experience with school or even sitting still for a few minutes.
Yet, although they knew little English or math and were unfamiliar with the culture here, Baid was able to create suitable games and activities to teach through play. Baid and her troop helped the children with their homework and also took them out for educational trips, putting smiles on their faces and giving Baid a deep sense of accomplishment!
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
About 160 new-to-Harker parents received a warm welcome upon attending an evening reception held in their honor at the Silver Creek Valley Country Club in San Jose.
Held in June, the annual event that welcomes new parents to Harker was graciously hosted by board member Sally Anderson. Chris Nikoloff, head of school, and Joe Rosenthal, executive director of advancement, opened the reception. Then, while socializing over appetizers and beverages, attendees visited with current parent “ambassadors” from various grades who were on hand to answer questions.
The group viewed a variety of video clips highlighting Harker’s strong academic, performing arts and athletic programs. Capping off the event was Casey Near ’06, who spoke about her many memorable experiences at Harker and how they have helped shape her as a person.
“At the end of the evening, guests had connected with one another and were very excited to become a part of the Harker community,” observed Rosenthal.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
Harker student Dolan Dworak, grade 8, and upper school biology teacher Kate Schafer set off for the Alaskan coastline in early June as part of Expedition GYRE, a joint project between the Alaska SeaLife Center and the Anchorage Museum that brought a team of scientists and artists together to examine the effects of marine debris on the environment and wildlife.
Using the research performed during the expedition as a guide, 20 artists will assemble an art exhibition that will be on display at the Anchorage Museum starting February 2014.
During the expedition Dworak, who previously spent three years working with Sea Scavenger Conservancy in San Francisco, was responsible for posting updates on social media about the group’s discoveries. He also learned a great deal about marine life. “Every day I was taken behind the scenes to meet animals in residence and recently rescued animals such as otters and seals,” he said. “Sometimes I got to handle the animal to learn how to feed it and take care of it.”
One animal in particular surprised him: “I learned that octopuses are amazingly interactive and curious. One octopus tried to eat my camera!”
Schafer helped develop the educational portion of the exhibition, and was pleased to be included among such a stellar team. “[Expedition leader] Howard Ferren brought together such a talented and diverse group of expedition members,” she said. “It was so great to be a part of the discussions around the topic of marine debris that began upon our arrival in Anchorage and will continue far into the future. I truly felt honored to have the opportunity to be a part of such a unique event.”
Reflecting on the issue of marine debris, Schafer said that reducing and possibly eliminating the use of single-use plastic containers, redesigning these containers to reduce their environmental impact and devising ways to minimize the amount of waste reaching the oceans are all crucial to solving the problem. “The challenge of controlling marine debris is a large and complex issue,” she said. “A huge investment of resources is needed to address the problem once garbage actually enters the ocean.”
Dworak found the whole experience inspiring and it further motivated him to continue his work to help clean the oceans. “I was inspired by everyone on the team and by the people who supported the team, and I hope to inspire others to care for the oceans and the sea life,” he said. “Our consumption is causing severe damage to the ocean and we need to stop using and disposing of plastics before it’s too late.”
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
With more than 100 members, Harker’s Parent Development Council (PDC) is a dedicated group of parent volunteers who work on behalf of the students to raise this year’s goal of $1.6 million to fund student programs such as field trips, the arts, athletics, library, technology and much more.
Near the start of every school year, these parents reach out to the rest of the parent body to secure annual giving gifts and pledges. “PDC members are committed to the success of our students and the school community,” said Melinda Gonzales, Harker’s managing director of advancement.
New PDC members are nominated either by current members or Harker faculty and staff. Nominations are reviewed by the school administration, and invitations to join are issued in May of each year for the following school year.
“We would like to extend our sincere gratitude for all that these important parent volunteers do for the students,” said Gonzales, noting that a complete list of PDC members is accessible via the Harker website at http://www.harker.org/page.cfm?p=173.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
by Ellen DiBiase
The Harker School has submitted a grant application to the Wayne & Gladys Valley Foundation for a gift of $5 million to be used in the construction of a sports and performing arts complex on the Saratoga campus.
Independent schools do not often qualify for large grants from community or educational foundations, as most educational grants target underprivileged populations. However, the Harker advancement team has identified a few foundations for which the school does meet the baseline criteria and has worked to articulate the school’s especially strong case for support.
The primary appeal highlights the importance of providing quality facilities not only for academics, but for athletics, the arts and student clubs as well, in order to help students achieve their full potentials. The addition of a sports and performing arts complex to the upper school campus is a greatly needed facility that will benefit the daily lives of students in profound ways, whether it is on the court, on the stage or in the classroom.
“Parents play a critical role in the success of any application we make to a charitable foundation,” explained Joe Rosenthal, Harker’s executive director of advancement. “Parent participation in annual giving is the common metric used to determine how broad
a school’s base of support is for its annual operations. Having a high percent of participation in annual giving puts the school in the best possible position to secure additional funding from foundations, because foundations want to add value and not replace stakeholders’ responsibility. Other independent schools in the Bay Area that have received foundation support have participation rates in the mid-to-high 90th percentile. Foundations may eliminate from consideration schools that don’t have a high percentage of participation.”
Rosenthal went on to add that as Harker was wrapping up the 2012-13 school year, “We made a special end-of-the-campaign appeal to increase participation in order to put Harker in as good a position as possible to secure the $5 million grant from the Valley Foundation. It was then that we asked the Harker community to rally and encouraged anyone who had not yet given to the annual giving campaign to please do so. We explained the importance of participation as it relates to the grant application. During the end-of-the-campaign appeal, we embarked on ‘The 5-for-5 Campaign.’ The premise was simple: give $5 (or $50, $500 or even $5,000) to help the school secure the $5 million grant. Parent response to the 5-for-5 campaign was very good, and we were able to boost our parent participation rate by an additional 17 percentage points in the final weeks of the campaign.”
It is anticipated that Harker’s application will be reviewed by the Valley Foundation this fall. The school will also be submitting grant proposals to additional foundations in the spring of 2014. With the Valley Foundation and other grant applications in the works, the school is increasing its effort to get the word out, which is why making a gift or pledge now, in the fall of 2013, is of the utmost importance.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
A Class of 2013 Endowment Fund has been established using the $45,429.90 raised from last year’s Senior Parent Appreciation Gift (SPAG).
It was parents from Harker’s first upper school graduating class who established the now annual tradition of SPAG, where parents make a gift in appreciation of the time their child has spent at Harker and the education they have received.
In past years, any incremental giving to the annual giving campaign over and above what a family had given during the previous year went to fund a beautification project on campus. Starting last year, SPAG funds go towards establishing a class fund that becomes part of the general endowment.
If the parents of graduating seniors choose to make a gift of $2,014 or more, their children receive bricks inscribed with their names permanently placed in Graduates’ Grove on the upper school campus, installed at a ceremony in the spring. Gifts for senior bricks also count for SPAG.
According to the advancement office, alumni and alumni parents are encouraged to contribute to their class funds going forward, not just for their senior years.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
by Ellen DiBiase
The Madala Family
Embodying the entrepreneurial and philanthropic spirit of the Bay Area, Srini and Durga Madala (Samantha, grade 11; Ajay, grade 5), are well known in the Harker community for their contributions to the advancement of the school.
Harker parents since 2003, they sponsored the construction of the Madala Biology Center in Nichols Hall on the Saratoga campus during Phase III of the Cornerstones of Success campaign. The biology center features state-of-the-art equipment that allows Harker students to conduct research at or beyond the college level and is one of five science centers within Nichols that enables better collaboration for both students and teachers.
The Madalas’ charitable giving to Harker didn’t stop with a major capital gift, however; they have also made generous contributions to the endowment fund, and in the 2007-08 school year, they pledged to make a 2:1 gift match for an increase in any family’s annual gift and a 5:1 gift match for donors who had not made a gift in the previous year, up to $1 million total. All in all, those matches were honored for the annual gifts of more than 550 Harker families in the 2007-08 school year.
Srini Madala is chairman and founder of the Softsol Group in Fremont, which is an IT services provider that empowers the customer to achieve efficiency, innovation, compliance and cost savings. He has also served on the board of directors for KQED San Francisco. Durga Madala works as a cardiologist at Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose and received her medical training through the University of California, San Francisco and California Pacific Medical Center.
Together, the Madalas’ latest venture has been the construction of a 42,000-square-foot community development center in Srini’s hometown of Nizamabad, India, where families can come together to share in educational, athletic, entrepreneurial and health-based activities. In memory of Srini’s grandparents, this extensive project was funded by the Madala Family Charitable Trust.
With their expertise in philanthropy and community development, the Madalas were key members of Harker’s capital campaign committee in its previous phase. The Madalas have generously opened their home to several head of school gatherings and hosted a head of school celebration dinner. Srini has served on the parent technology committee at Harker and in recent years has also worked directly with Harker students as both a career panelist and mentor. Ajay and Samantha have both been active participants in the Harker performing arts program, and Samantha has also played lacrosse for the upper school.
The Singh Family
For Jagdeep and Roshni Singh (Noor, grade 9; Kismet, grade 6; Nageena, grade 4), choosing to make a visionary gift to support the construction of a new pool on the Saratoga campus felt like a natural fit.
“All three of my daughters swim,” Roshni Singh said. “My mother was a national athlete in India as well as a Ph.D. in psychology. As a family, we have seen the benefit of both academics and athletics.”
A practicing physician at Kaiser Permanente in Santa Clara, she is board-certified in internal medicine and hospice and palliative care. Her husband, Jagdeep, is the cofounder and CEO of Quantum-Scape, an energy storage corporation, and holds degrees from the University of Maryland, Stanford, and the University of California, Berkeley. Previous, he co-founded and served as president and CEO of Infinera. He has been an advisory council member for the Stanford Graduate School of Business and is also an advisory board member of RWI Ventures.
Since the installation of the Singh Aquatic Center in 2007, all previous pool records at Harker have been broken. The 25-yard pool features eight lanes and supports the competitive swim team and the water polo team. It is also home to the popular duct tape regatta, an annual spirit event in which classes compete against each other in a relay race using boats made only of duct tape and cardboard. The pool is further made available to the greater community for independent sports leagues and swimming lessons.
In addition to the Singhs’ capital campaign gift in Phase III, they have also offered volunteer and sponsorship support to special events at Harker, including the Family & Alumni Picnic and the 2013 Harker Fashion Show. Roshni has served as a homeroom volunteer and is currently a parent ambassador welcoming new families entering grade 4.
Teré Aceves, director of preschool and lower school volunteer programs, commented that, “Jagdeep and Roshni can often be found at the Harker community socials, poised to help in any way they can.”
The Singh family is an exemplary model of how even the busiest of parents can find time to offer their support to the school in a variety of ways. “We hope that Harker will continue to excel in all avenues,” Roshni said.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
“Family Party,” the independent film starring Harker students and alumni, finished filming over the summer and is currently in post-production.
The film stars Vishal Vaidya, grade 11, as Nick, who wants to escape a boring family party with his friend Arti to attend a local concert. The film also stars junior Jai Ahuja and 2013 graduates Rahul Nalamasu, now attending the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York, and Cecilia Lang-Ree, who starts at Stanford this fall. During production, performing arts chair Laura Lang-Ree and upper school drama teacher Jeff Draper acted as advisers to the cast and crew.
Vaidya said the character of Nick appealed to him almost immediately. “When I first got the part, I read through the script and got a weird feeling of déjà vu,” he said. “The kinds of interactions that Nick had with his parents were completely similar to the daily conversations and arguments I have with my own mom and dad.”
The part of Nick was a new challenge for Vaidya, as it required him to channel a different set of emotions. He previously played Laertes in the Harker production of “Hamlet” and
a troubled teenager in last year’s Student-Directed Showcase. “Nick was a much harder character to play because I couldn’t always rely on strong emotion to carry me through his scenes but rather had to utilize my scene partner, as the majority of my screen time was conversational,” he said.
Ahuja, who plays Nick’s friend Sahil, found the challenge of playing a down-to-earth character was a new experience for him. “Toning down the energy that I normally use for a theater so that it would work well on film was challenging,” he said. “I found that just being around on set was an amazing experience over all. I enjoyed watching everything get set up, the camera being operated, the lights being put in place, and our directors working together. It was exciting to be out in front, and simply to be acting with such a great cast and crew.”
“Everyone in the cast and crew were completely bonded by the end of the shoot,” said Vaidya. “The fact that most of the crew were either in college or had just graduated made it even easier to connect because the age difference was so small.”
The makers of “Family Party” are currently seeking additional funding to get the film through the post-production phase. Once it is finished, it will be submitted to several notable film festivals, including Sundance, South by Southwest and the Toronto Film Festival.
Vaidya said the way the film depicts Indian-American culture is an important reason for it to receive the funding necessary to be completed. “It’s really the only film about Indians I’ve ever seen that views them as normal people with normal problems,” he said. “On top of that, it’s just a really sweet touching story that all sorts of people will connect with.”
“I truly believe that it will help society to get past the stereotypes that we have today, replacing them with a current idea of what life is really like for us,” Ahuja said.
More information about the film, including instructions on how to donate, is available at its website, www.familypartythefilm.com.
This story originally appeared in the fall 2013 Harker Quarterly.
Over the summer, several of Harker’s performing arts staff stayed busy with performances, professional development and other activities.
Monica Colletti, middle school drama teacher, traveled to Chicago for two weeks to take an immersion course in music improvisation at the Second City Training center. “As a result, I have since begun taking weekly improv classes at Made Up Theater in Fremont,” she said.
At the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, upper school drama teacher Jeff Draper worked with the Young Rep program, which had more than 100 students from ages 12-22 spending seven weeks in acting, musical theater, playwriting, directing and technical theater workshops. “Summer programs in the performing arts can be successful, especially if there is a facility to run them,” Draper noted.
Danny Dunn, lower school technical director, directed no less than five musicals for the summer youth program at the Tabard Theatre Company in San Jose. She also served as the director for the company’s summer camp.
One of the busier performing arts faculty members was upper school dance teacher Karl Kuehn, who performed in shows by the Atlas School of Dance and Dance Effects, as well as being a backup dancer on the main stage at San Francisco Pride. He also attended a dance camp in Sacramento with the junior varsity and varsity dancers, and did dance and choreography rehearsals with the Ragazzi Boys Chorus during the Dance Teacher Summit in New York City.
Performing arts chair Laura Lang-Ree continued fronting the Los Gatos Saratoga Big Band as lead vocalist and performed at various venues and festivals throughout the summer, such as Santana Row and the San Jose Jazz Festival.
Upper school music teacher Susan Nace performed at a variety of concerts, including one featuring music from video games. She also attended a “wonderful” choral conference in Santa Fe, N.M. “I filled in some questions I’ve had on choral tuning and ensemble rhythm issues,” she said.