This article was originally published in the Harker Quarterly Spring 2011 Edition
Harker Elite Soccer Camp strives to provide a professional soccer environment for players to immerse themselves in the game. Camps are open to players ages 9-16 of all levels. Our challenging, structured curriculum, combined with the outstanding caliber of our coaches, ensures players receive high-quality instruction, tailored specifically to their needs. Varsity soccer coach Shaun Tsakiris brings a uniquely Harker approach to the clinics, hand-picking his coaches for their playing experience (often professionals) and coaching expertise.
“These are people who have chosen to stay in the game to work with kids after retiring from playing,” he said. They consider it their mission to find the inner athlete in every player, whatever the ability level, and help each one advance. How they do that is a bit unusual and fun.
While every day ends with a scrimmage, what comes before may look only vaguely like soccer. Tsakiris is a big fan of psychomotor training; that is, getting the body to do what the mind tells it. To this end, players may be asked to dribble a soccer ball with the left foot while bouncing a ball with the right hand, all while navigating an obstacle course.
Each morning begins with agility, coordination and balance exercises, which support the players’ ability to master such skills as proper balance on the plant foot while passing or quick acceleration after changing direction. A lesson that ends with dribbling the soccer ball may start with jumping hurdles.
Players also learn to play in a variety of contexts, including small-sided game, large game (large goals) and futsal. Why mix it up so much? Tsakiris uses futsal, for example, to target foot skills under gamelike conditions. “With only four or five players on a team, each gets a lot of touches on the ball, and that helps them develop craftiness,” he said, referring to the ability to smoothly weave around opponents.
Players receive a soccer ball and T-shirt at the start of each week, and an individual evaluation completed by their coach at the end. The last day of each clinic also brings a surprise guest speaker. Special guests in past years have included San Jose Earthquakes goalie Joe Canon and Olympic gold medalist Aly Wagner of the U.S. women’s national team.
This article was originally published in the Harker Quarterly Spring 2011 Edition
The Harker Swim School officially kicks off June 13 with private, semi-private and group lessons for all levels, ages three to adult.
Harker has a special, and especially effective, approach to swim instruction. Weeklong sessions consist of 30-minute lessons on consecutive days, Monday through Thursday, to give swimmers the opportunity to build immediately on their new skills. Caring instructors are trained to motivate and encourage learners using a variety of methods to build confidence along with swimming technique.
Adults may enroll in private or semi-private lessons or lap swim at no charge during their children’s lessons. Even just watching your child learn in the beautiful Singh Aquatic Center is a nice way to spend time this summer!
Harker’s Aquatic Fitness Camp is just the ticket for students in grades 4-8 who love to swim and would like to grow and refine their aquatics skills.
During each two-week session, participants spend time in the classroom learning about physiology, first aid, CPR and stroke mechanics; on the field developing core strength and endurance; and in the water practicing strokes and survival skills.
Special emphasis is placed on the knowledge, confidence and skills necessary to prevent, prepare for and respond to an aquatic emergency. The curriculum incorporates the American Red Cross Guard Start training program, so campers come away knowing the roles and responsibilities of a professional lifeguard.
This article was originally published in the Harker Quarterly Spring 2011 Edition
Each year, more than 100 international students aged 6-16 come to Harker’s renowned English Language Institute (ELI) to improve their English and writing skills. Many seek a Harker English Language Proficiency Certificate to support their applications to American boarding schools, day schools and English international schools.
ELI students study English grammar, vocabulary, reading comprehension, writing and oral presentation until 3:30 each day. Then younger students join their American counterparts for afternoon recreation activities, and advanced students team up with American “buddies,” native speakers who help them with SAT preparation and other skill building in English.
In addition, Harker history teacher Jared Ramsey will reprise his popular course segment on American history, which was added to the curriculum in 2010 to further support ELI students moving on to U.S. schools.
Weekly field trips provide our international guests an opportunity to learn about local points of interest and enjoy typical American summer adventures. The trips are worked into the curriculum, and students use their travel experiences to create written and oral projects for presentation.
This article originally appeared in the spring 2011 Harker Quarterly.
Harker managed to reach two milestones in January when Intel announced that seven Harker seniors — Roshni Bhatnagar, Josephine Chen, Benjamin Chen, Rohan Mahajan, Nikhil Parthasarathy, Susan Tu and Jason Young — were named Intel Science Talent Search semifinalists, a California record. Two weeks later Harker became the only school in the nation to have two finalists, Mahajan and Parthasarathy. At press time both were preparing to travel to Washington, D.C., to compete against 38 other high school students in the final round.
October brought the announcement that Jacqueline Wang, grade 10, had been named a regional finalist in the 2010 Siemens competition. Regional semifinalists from Harker were Bhatnagar, Mahajan, Parthasarathy and Supraja Swamy, grade 12.
Students teamed up with mentors to complete the projects they had submitted for the contests. The mentors used their experience and expertise to provide guidance to the students as they conducted their research, while also fostering their intellectual curiosity. “I worked very closely with my mentors to complete the project,” said Parthasarathy, who worked with University of California, Santa Cruz mentors Sandra Faber, professor of astronomy, and Kamson Lai, a postdoctoral scholar in the astronomy and astrophysics department. His project dealt with the structure of distant galaxies. “When I first arrived at Santa Cruz, they gave me a lot of help to understand the necessary background information and also introduced me to many of the tools astronomers use to analyze galaxies.”
“Although only a high school student, I was given the freedom and the resources to pursue any topic that interested me and to contribute my thoughts and ideas during lab meetings and discussions,” said Josephine Chen, who studied the effects the compound celastrol has on reducing asthmatic symptoms. “Supported by the guidance of the entire lab, I dared to venture further, performing experi- ments no one else in the lab was familiar with.”
Working on the projects with mentors in labs also provides insight to the students on the kinds of research and experiments they will be doing at the college level. “The work that Nikhil did is comparable to what we would give a beginning graduate student,” said Faber. “He picked things up remarkably fast, and it was a pleasure working with him.”
Students also get to experience the thrill of making discoveries that could have a significant real-world impact. “Realizing the impact our findings could have on emotion regulation research was a seminal moment for me,” said Bhatnagar, whose project on how the insula, a small part of the brain, changes its size according to how people manage negative emotions earned her a semifinalist ranking in both the Intel and Siemens competitions. “This study was really exploratory. There were very few similar studies to compare with.”
These recent successes bolster Harker’s already impressive track record in these and other science competitions. Mahajan and Parthasarathy became the third and fourth Intel finalists from Harker since the school began participating five years ago, and Wang is the second consecutive regional finalist from Harker in the Siemens competition.
“One of the things that we emphasize at Harker is pushing yourself to reach your potential. It’s just another bar [students] set for themselves,” said Anita Chetty, science department chair. “I just want to offer as many opportunities as I can, and it’s up to the students themselves to decide if they what to participate.”
“The education I got at Harker was invaluable in preparing me for my research,” Parthasarathy said. “Because of the interdisciplinary nature of astrophysics, this project really combined the knowledge I got at Harker in areas such as math, physics and computer science.”
Chetty pointed out that several other departments in addition to science also contribute greatly to Harker’s success in science competitions. At the first January assembly to announce Harker’s Intel semifinalists, teachers from the science department who read the students’ projects and offered guidance in the submission process, noted how much the writing of the projects had improved.
“[The paper is] the only way of communicating what they’ve done and what they think about it,” Chetty said. “It has to be detailed enough, yet it has to be clear and you can’t ramble on.” She credited Harker’s English and history departments as well as its librarians for training the students to write high-caliber papers.
“It gets back to the standard that we set in each of our departments,” she said. “I really believe it’s important to recognize we are actually teaching the same skills, even though we may be using different disciplines.”
This article originally appeared in the spring 2011 Harker Quarterly.
While students at all schools sit at the edge of their seats waiting for the lunch bell, Harker students at all three campuses have a particularly good reason to look forward to lunchtime. Harker students dash off to a tasty and healthy lunch of hand-carved meats, salads, fruits and a variety of fresh, in- season dishes.
For 20 years, Steve Martin, executive chef, has worked closely with a team of chefs and interns from various culinary schools to incorporate the freshest ingredients and healthy options into each day’s menu. After working for years in Boston for a contract food service, Martin realized that the business was more about profit than nutrition.
“At Harker, it’s about eating the best you can eat,” he said. “Howard and Diana Nichols were so caring and concerned about everything, and food was one of those things.”
With the goal of matching food quality to the quality of education in classrooms and providing a balanced diet, Martin purchases local, fresh and in-season produce and occasionally works with a nutritionist to determine what dishes to cook. Tomatoes and small vegetables from Harker’s garden also make it onto plates. “I buy the best ingredients,” he said. “I spend my budget on quality, not quantity. We buy a lot of ingredients and make things from scratch.”
On any given day, upper school students can choose from selections in the buffet line including a full entrée with meat, veggies and rice or potatoes; a vegetarian entrée; a la carte pasta; an assortment of prepared fresh salads, soup, rice, healthy fruit juices and low fat milk.
In the adjacent Bistro Café there is a full salad bar with a variety of dressings, a meat station with hand carved fish or meat, an array of deli salads, baskets
of bananas, apples and oranges and, at least a couple days a week, delicious cookies. Occasionally, Martin rents a smoker, and students have a selection of smoked chicken, brisket and ribs to add to their meals.
The middle school campus offers similar selections, though without quite the variety, but certain dishes are only served once a week to prevent students from always selecting pizza and fried foods as a midday meal. “First and foremost the food we serve is healthy,” Danae McLaughlin, assistant to the executive chef, said. “It is not processed food loaded with fat and sodium … and we are very creative in our use of whole grains and vegetables so the kids enjoy eating them.”
Lower school students also have similar restrictions and policies that limit pizza to once a week. “If you take a look at the lower school menu,” McLaughlin added, “the desserts include a lot of fresh fruit.” The kindergartners sit in a designated area and are served pre-portioned food. In addition, two kitchens are staffed to offer a variety of foods including falafel, samosas, Swedish meatballs and frittatas.
Students enjoy diversity, and Martin aims to present a sampling of multicultural offerings while maintaining a healthy selection. “I don’t think the kids even realize that they are eating healthier,” Martin joked.
Junior Rohit Sanbhadti, grade 11, loves the school’s tomato and basil soup and, as a vegetarian, is surprised by the variety and choices Harker offers. “I think we’re really lucky to have food of this caliber,” he said.
Martin credits his permanent staff and a rotating team of interns for their creative ideas and enthusiasm. Hailing from prestigious culinary schools including Le Cordon Bleu, California Culinary Academy in San Francisco and Martin’s alma mater, Johnson & Wales in Rhode Island, more than 100 interns have joined the Harker community for a semester to experience various facets of food services from menu planning to cold kitchen cooking to inventory control and purchasing. “We work hard to create a culture where culinary creativity and entrepreneurial spirit thrive,” Martin said.
Intern Alicia Parke Galou said her time at Harker has been a “great experience right from the beginning.” She discovered Harker’s internship program at a career fair at the Professional Culinary Institute in Campbell, where she met McLaughlin and Martin. “I thought it would be a great opportunity for me,” Galou said, noting she has enjoyed every moment of it. The ease with which she fell into the swing of Harker’s program allowed her to learn quickly about the important factors of cooking for more than 800 people a day.
Along with serving student lunches, Harker’s kitchens prepare even higher quality meals for a wide variety of school events, from small lunches for donors or visiting educators to full banquets for student groups and parent gatherings, like the Senior Mothers’ Lunch held each spring prior to graduation. “Not having to contract with outside vendors allows us to control costs and provide a higher quality meal,” noted McLaughlin. “Plus, at these limited events, our staff doubles as servers, giving permanent and temporary staff valuable experience in presentation and timing.”
Thanks to Martin and his team, Harker’s food service program is recognized as innovative and Martin believes it will only grow and expand. “The program just keeps getting better and better because that’s what Harker wants,” he said.
For more information, go to news.harker. org and search on “food,” or contact Steve Martin at stevem@harker.org.
This story was first published in the Harker Quarterly Spring 2011 Edition
More than 500 parents, students and alumni attended Harker’s Jan. 8 screening of “Race to Nowhere,” a documentary film exploring stress related disorders in high-achieving American teenagers and the ironic fact that many are not prepared for college.
Head of School Christopher Nikoloff praised the film as affording an important opportunity for reflection. It also comes at a good time during Harker’s yearlong accreditation self-study.
“A lot of the issues in the movie … we have been talking about for a long time with parents and teachers,” he said. “Now that they are in the national spotlight,” he added, “it’s a great time to make sure we’re part of the dialogue.”
Indeed, more than 130 parents attended follow-up discussions in the lower, middle and upper schools. They were joined by Nikoloff and Jennifer Gargano, assistant head of school for academic affairs, as well as deans, division heads and counselors from each campus.
Nikoloff opened each discussion by highlighting where Harker is, has been, and is going with respect to some of the issues raised in the film. By way of background, he referenced the 1981 book “The Hurried Child.” “Over the last 30 years, there have been a lot of hurrying dynamics in our children’s lives,” he said. “Now there is something of a backlash. It’s important not to get caught up in either end of the pendulum swing.”
With that in mind, Harker is continually evaluating its own programs from the perspective of its core values. “Our guiding star is love of learning, or intellectual curiosity,” Nikoloff said. “So when we ask questions … our goal is always deeper learning.” He then outlined some concrete steps Harker has taken over time in accordance with this philosophy.
The steps include improving the student experience by scheduling final exams before the winter holiday break, reducing schedule conflicts between athletics and performing arts, and moving to trimesters/semesters to allow more time between assessments.
Other initiatives have deepened the scope of the upper school wellness program, established advisories for grades 6-12 and created an upper school dean of studies position to help families formulate a plan for high school. The school culture has also been moving in the direction of fewer awards ceremonies and greater restrictions on acceleration.
Going forward, Harker is exploring the possibility of becoming a Challenge Success school and, perhaps most importantly, round table discussions have been scheduled in the upper school to solicit student feedback about the “Race to Nowhere.”
Nikoloff also addressed some common questions, including the issue of homework. “We are doing a deep homework audit, and we do think we can accomplish more with a little bit less,” said Nikoloff. But he also cautioned, “You probably will not feel that tonight. It’s a reflective process that will slowly yield results.”
That sat well with parent Julie Moncton (Michael, grade 7), who said she appreciated the opportunity for parents to weigh in. “It’s nice to see that change is in the works, and yet it won’t be changing so radically that we end up with something that won’t work out,” she said.
Other questions focused on math and language arts grouping and whether it contributes to competition. Nikoloff urged parents to see grouping as part of the process of learning, not as a goal to be achieved. The idea behind grouping is to match each student with “the pace that is within his or her zone of proximal development,” he said. “That means children are being challenged without being stressed.”
Seeking Balance in Parenting
As Nikoloff opened the discussion to attendees, questions naturally evolved into lively exchanges. Parents in each division grappled with how to walk the line between encouragement and pressure and, on the flip side, how to preserve time for truly nourishing extracurriculars.
One question, in particular, hung over all the others: what will colleges think?
On this as on other points, Nikoloff urged parents not to compare their children with anyone else’s, but rather to evaluate their activities by whether they are happy and meaningfully engaged. “That will translate into getting into the college that is right for them,” he said.
His message resonated with Trish Tobin (Sheridan, grade 8; Brendan, grade 6; Ryan, grade 2), who said, “I really appreciate how much time this school invests in learning how children learn and what’s best for them as a whole — not just their academic selves.” Kindergarten parent Jennifer Hargreaves (Sydney Adler, K) agreed. She particularly valued the “variety of perspectives from parents,” she said, and the fact that “the school is leading the conversation in the best interests of our children.”
Dodging Trouble in the Teen Years
Discussion at the upper school event focused heavily on the specifics of right now, with many parents wanting to know warning signs of stress to watch for in their teens. Among the recommendations offered by Nikoloff and upper school counselors Lori Kohan and Chris Colletti were to find some unscheduled time with children in which to gauge their stress levels and to take notice of an extreme response to a bad grade.
At school, teachers and advisors make sure to work as a team to solicit one another’s observations if something seems amiss, the counselors said, and parents should always feel free to contact them with concerns as well.
At all three forums, parents were encouraged to communicate their own values, for example by asking kids more questions about the “process” of learning than about their grades. Padmaja Indukuri found that seeing the film with her daughter Laya (grade 8) propelled their communication in precisely that direction. “I was asking questions, but I didn’t know how she was feeling,” she said. “She is telling me now, so I understand.”
Casey Near ’06 offered valuable perspective based on her own experience. The Harker students who thrive are “the ones who really take the Harker message to heart – that it’s about the process, and it’s about the ability to think critically,” she said. “So it’s the parents’ role to make sure that’s the focus – and not that test, that quiz or that homework assignment.”
This article was originally published in the Harker Quarterly Spring 2011 Edition
The Harker School has a highly developed technical theater program now offering new opportunities to its most devoted theater tech students, and a trio of upper school student technicians is leading the way.
Seniors Araby Martin and Michael Prutton, and Christophe Pellesier, grade 11, took major leadership roles in the design, technical execution and personnel management of this year’s edition of the grade 5 show, “Go West,” becoming the first students to take on such a level of responsibility for the successful coordination of the lower school’s largest production.
Each student took on a highly specialized role. Prutton designed and ran the lights, and Pellesier took on elements of sound design and live-mixed it during performances, adjusting levels and coordinating between input from 32 different sources. Both were complex positions in a show featuring 120 10-year-olds. Martin took on managing the frenetic flow of movements backstage, keeping the young performers focused and knowledgeable about their next moves, ensuring that microphones changed hands properly and that props were utilized to plan. “I love kids,” Martin said. “I loved working with them.”
According to Prutton, Martin has the gift of a booming voice and the will to use it. When she and Prutton have collaborated on projects in the past, Martin often played the part of group leader and cheerleader – the active, vocal organizer next to Prutton’s more measured tactics.
“Araby gets it. Araby knows how to stage manage,” said Danny Dunn, lower school performing arts technical director. Prutton and Martin have each stage managed productions for the Harker Conservatory at the upper school.
The student techs are the end product of a long process. Harker is able to grow its own technical staff because it has the professionals in place to train them. Having a technical director is rare, said Dunn, and Harker has three, all consumed with technical theater. Brian Larsen at the upper school and Paul Vallerga at the middle school, along with Dunn, teach classes, work after school and mentor students all while helping students at all three campuses with more than 75 performances a year. The eagerness with which all three await the new theater building and the opportunity to teach their students in a space equal to the students’ abilities is clear.
Students as young as grade 5 volunteer after school to “operate complex lighting and sound systems, build scenery and create the magic,” according to Dunn. “The absolute enthusiasm of the tech students who can’t wait to give up their weekends to work extremely hard is amazing!” said Dunn. “They do it because they love it.”
By grade 6, and continuing through grade 8, classes build on earlier encounters and take a step up in challenge and complexity. During a span of several months, students are asked to design every aspect of a scene from a play. Everything from how the work is illuminated to each article of clothing must be considered.
There are more classes and opportunities for upper school students and plenty of opportunity for practical application as assistants, stage managers or assistant directors on projects across campuses, including the grade 5 show. Allowing tech students to handle critical jobs in lower school productions meant students could “cut their teeth” in a less demanding venue than the upper school performances.
With the technical infrastructure already set up via the technical theater program on the lower school campus, the adjustment was a match and the students really began to stretch their wings.
“Michael originally was simply going to be the lighting operator,” says Dunn. “But because he was so experienced and very eager to take that next step, I offered the bigger job to him and he jumped on it.” Making the challenge more exciting, and more complicated, Harker had just added a new lighting board to its equipment, from which a live technician can remotely adjust and pre-program equipment.
“He really got to sink his teeth into it,” said Dunn. “Sometimes, moving lights don’t know what you want them to do. He was able to beat them into submission quite nicely. I think he might know how to use that board even better than I do. The lights in the show sure looked great.”
Pellessier, meanwhile, was tasked with juggling a plethora of audio equipment, managing and adjusting levels of sound remotely, and balancing how much sound was projected to various areas of the theater. All of the sound was manually operated live, so whenever an actor with a microphone left the stage, Pellissier had to turn it off.
“We had sixteen wireless mics, and several of those swapped between two, three, four different people. We had at least 24 people who had wireless mics in the show. Plus, we had seven hanging mics. And every on-and-off, of every level, of all of those mics, Christophe had to control, and at the right time, and at the right place, bring them down,” said Dunn admiringly.
“The goal was that I was going to be there, right over them, to help or fix,” said Dunn. “We met that goal. By the time the show went on, I was just there for the moral support. That was the absolute ideal goal.”
This article was originally published in the Harker Quarterly Spring 2011 Edition
Fifth Graders ‘Go West’
By Steve M. Boyle ’06
This January Harker’s entire grade 5 class took part in multiple performances of the musical “Go West,” by John Jacobson and Roger Emerson.
The musical, billed as “a musical celebration of America’s westward expansion,” was directed by music teacher Jennifer Cowgill, and the cast included 120 students. Cowgill used the cast to create rich crowd scenes including cowboys, belles, reporters, journalists, businessmen, horses and cows. “They are singing two and three-part harmonies in a number of songs in the show. This is very impressive for a group of more than 100 fifth graders,” said Cowgill.
Students from the lower, middle and upper schools were eager to pitch in. Danny Dunn’s grade 5 technical theater class served as stage crew, handling props and directing traffic behind the scenes (see story, page 28).
Cowgill noted the importance of learning the process: “The process of rehearsing for a show allows them to take risks and share creativity, work with others and develop consideration for the people with whom they interact every day,” Cowgill wrote in her program notes. “By being involved in this, they are beginning to develop life skills that stretch beyond the classroom.” To read the full story in Harker News [Online], search on “Go West.”
Winter Concert 2011
By Zach Jones
The 2011 Winter Concert on Jan. 14 brought together groups from all three campuses for a special two-part show at the Blackford Theater. With eight groups performing, the concert provided a well rounded view of the talents of Harker’s many instrumentalists.
The Lower School String Ensemble, directed by Toni Woodruff, began the show with their versions of “Sword Dance” by Bob Phillips and “Bach Country Fiddles.” The Lower School Orchestra and Lower School Jazz Ensemble, both directed by Louis Hoffman, then followed, performing a number of popular pieces, including the orchestra’s performance of Strauss’ “Radetzky March” and the jazz ensemble’s rendition of Wild Cherry’s “Play That Funky Music.”
Directed by David Hart, who also directed the Grade 6 Orchestra and the Grade 7-8 Orchestra, the Middle School Jazz Band played well-known tunes such as “The Saints Go Marching In” and Billy Strayhorn’s “Take the ‘A’ Train.”
The Grade 6 Orchestra’s set included the Shaker hymn “Simple Gifts” and a rousing performance of the famous “James Bond Theme” by Monty Norman. Grades 7 and 8 played “Jupiter, Bringer of Jollity” from Holst’s “The Planets” and concluded with “New World, Mvt. I” from Dvorák’s “Symphony No. 9.”
The Harker School Jazz Band and The Harker School Orchestra, upper school groups directed by Chris Florio, closed the evening. The jazz band was joined by two special guests from Tamagawa Gakuen, Miyu Kondo on tenor saxophone and Marina Saito on baritone saxophone. They performed such tunes as “Bones For Basie” by English composer Alan Hare and the rollicking “You Can Have It” by Morgan Ames and James Foster.
After a brief intermission, the upper school orchestra concluded the concert with their performances of pieces by Verdi, Schubert and Brahms. Their performance of Saint-Saëns’ foreboding “Danse Bacchanale,” from “Samson and Dalila,” brought the show to an exhilarating close.
Grade 2 and 3 Holiday Show
By Zach Jones
The talents of grades 2 and 3 filled the Bucknall Theater with seasonal cheer at the special holiday show, titled “Home at Harker for the Holidays,” on Dec. 16. The show featured all students in both grades, each singing a wide array of holiday songs.
Louis Hoffman, lower school music teacher, directed the show. Second and third graders collaborated for the opening number, “December Nights.” Grade 2 students carried on with songs such as “Over the River and Through the Woods” and a tune called “Piñata,” which included swinging at piñatas suspended above the stage.
The grade 3 singers took the stage shortly after to perform a special selection of songs, including “Arbolito,” sung entirely in Spanish and accompanied by lower school Spanish teacher Anita Gilbert on vocals, music teachers Toni and Paul Woodruff on violin and piano, and four student instrumentalists, also from grade 3: cellist Rachel Broweleit, violinist Gabriel Chai, violinist Kyle Li and cellist Jeffrey Yang.
For the final performance, both classes once again took the stage to sing “Around the World at Holiday Time” and the grand finale, “Jingle Bell Rock.”
Grade 1 Holiday Show
By Zach Jones
Grade 1 students provided plenty of holiday cheer to the audience at the Bucknall Theater during their holiday concert in mid-December.
Directed by Louis Hoffman, lower school music teacher, the entire first grade class sang a diverse repertoire of holiday themed songs, including “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” They also performed a medley of traditional songs about Hanukkah.
The halfway point of the show featured a dance number to the song “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Johnny Marks, with choreography by after-school dance teacher Kristin Maurer. During the second half, grade 1 homeroom teachers Rita Stone, Cindy Proctor, Diann Chung and Mary Holaday took the stage, dancing to “Gingerbread Cookies” with giant gingerbread cookie cut-outs.
Following the show, students and parents attended a special after-party in the Bucknall gym, where they enjoyed cookies, hot chocolate and a special appearance by Frosty the Snowman.
Student-Directed Showcase
By William Cracraft
Student-Directed Showcase (SDS) is the culmination of four years of hard work tempered both by fun and the passion performers bring to their craft. Each year eager seniors apply to take this course, taught by Laura Lang-Ree, and the lucky few get an unusual glimpse into the world of play direction and production.
Each director must choose the piece to be presented, plan the set, audition the cast and arrange for all the necessary technical help to make the production a success. This year four seniors, Adi Parige, Mallika Dhaliwal, Allika Walvekar and John Ammatuna, took up their tasks with a will and produced some great theater.
The shows this year were “Hard Candy” (Walvekar), “The Marvelous Wonderettes” (Ammatuna), “The Dancers” (Dhaliwal) and “All in the Timing” (Parige).
“I never realized how many views there are when looking at a show,” Ammatuna said. “I had to look at it as a director, musical director, costumer, props manager, choreographer, technician and audience member, but learning to look at the show in so many ways was a great experience.”
Walvekar agreed. “I definitely realized that you have to stay true to your directorial vision, but you also have to be flexible,” she said. “Not everything can happen the way you first envisioned it, so you have to be willing to adapt.”
All four students will take away a lifetime experience from the shows they produced. “SDS was the most amazing opportunity, and I will treasure it forever because it allowed me to grow both as an artist and as a person,” said Dhaliwal.
See the full story in Harker News Online; search on “SDS.”
WinterSong
By Zach Jones
Upper school vocal group Bel Canto was joined by several friends for the annual WinterSong concert on Jan. 21 in the Nichols Hall auditorium. Directed by Catherine Snider, Bel Canto kicked off with “Everybody Rejoice,” from the musical “The Wiz,” followed by a version of Mozart’s “Ave Verum” and “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In” from the musical “Hair.”
The next phase of the concert featured a number of impressive solo performances by Harker Conservatory certificate candidates, including guitarist Nidhi Gandhi, grade 12, playing “Rondo, Op. 48” by Fernando Sor; Allika Walvekar, grade 12, singing the Weill/Gershwin piece “My Ship”; Catherine Stiles, grade 12, performing a Scarlatti piece on the harp; and junior Charles Levine performing an original piano piece, titled “Winter.”
For the final portion, Bel Canto once again gathered onstage, singing “Ose Shalom,” a traditional Hebrew text set to music by John Leavitt, and the traditional spiritual “Shine on Me.”
Upper School Dance Draws on Vivid Sources to Celebrate the Natural World
By Steve M. Boyle ’06
The upper school dance production, a yearly celebration of dance with choreography by upper school dance teachers and students, was presented in late January. This year’s production, “Be-A-Muse(d),” was designed by artistic director Laura Rae as an investigation of inspiration and creative processes in the natural world.
“Be-A-Muse(d)” heavily showcased technology to tell its story, with twin projector screens flanking the Blackford stage, reflecting a series of breathtaking panoramas and metropolitan vignettes.
This year’s production drew its music from a panoply of popular, classical, cultural and expressive sources, making room for contemporary bands like Muse and Temper Trap alongside a Hans Zimmer soundtrack, Charles Mingus’ jazz and Niña Pastori’s flamenco.
Student dancers wore shimmering, futuristic outfits that reflected the stage lights, and one memorable moment featured a musical number composed entirely from the startup sounds of a Windows computer.
The production reached its apex in the rendition of the heartbreaking song “This Bitter Earth.” There, dancers in dusty, brown, wrinkled costumes – like decaying leaves in autumn – danced a dipping, worn-down ode, an illustration of the death required for seasonal rebirth.
“Be-A-(Muse)d” was choreographed by teachers Laura Rae, Karl Kuehn, Amalia Vasconi and Adrian Bermudez, along with students Carmen Das-Grande, Katie Forsberg, Nidhi Gandhi, Amritha Minisandram, Daisy Mohrman, Naomi So, Kenny Wong, Erica Woolsey, all grade 12; Sarika Asthana, Sonya Chalaka, Sarah Howells, Margaret Krackeler, all grade 11; and Tiphaine Delepine, Michaela Kastelman, Molly Wolfe, all grade 10.
See the full story in Harker News Online; search on “dance.”
This article was originally published in the Harker Quarterly Spring 2011 Edition
Grandparents’ Day, a special day for students and grandparents alike, is coming to the lower school campus on May 6, from 2:30 p.m. The day is themed International Grandparents’ Day to highlight Harker’s wonderfully diverse community, and showcase a day in the life of a student at Harker.
When guests arrive they will be welcomed by Chris Nikoloff, head of school, enjoy hearty appetizers and be treated to a remarkable student performance. Grandparents will join their grandchildren in a tour of the campus, which will include a classroom visit, book sale, photo opportunity and art show.
In keeping with the global theme, guests will receive a passport-like invitation and a boarding pass as they arrive, and student artwork will mark the journey through campus. Previous Grandparents’ Days have drawn about 400 guests and the same number is expected this year.
“Our guests will travel through the world of Harker and learn about our programs and our community,” said Teré Aceves, director of K-8 volunteer programs. “They will also have a chance to teach our students about their native countries and how we are all connected, though separated by distance.”
This article was originally published in the Harker Quarterly Spring 2011 Edition
The eagerly awaited fashion show 2011 “When I Grow Up … Dream Big!” lived up to its name, with a big, exciting event. At the two shows, more than 1,000 guests were greeted at the Santa Clara Convention Center by middle school student hosts and led to the event foyer, where they could peruse the beautifully decorated tables filled with auction items. Some tried their luck at the gift wheel, while others headed into the ballroom to find their tables and listen to the Harker Jazz Band, directed by Chris Florio.
Elegant tables decked out with floral centerpieces surrounded a cross-shaped runway flanked by three active video screens. Chris Nikoloff, head of school, welcomed guests and introduced the show’s honorary chair, Diana Nichols, with a short video clip. Pictures of Nichols as a child and a voiceover explaining her passion for science provided a nostalgic introduction to Nichols herself, who took to the runway to thank the guests, sponsors and fashion show committee for their work.
The show’s theme was creatively interwoven throughout by show director Laura Lang-Ree, chair of the performing arts department. Before and during fashion segments, video screens showed clips of teachers and staff sharing their dreams and giving advice on finding one’s passion. Along with taped video, live video of the action brought excitement and immediacy to the proceedings; J Gaston, graphic arts teacher and Office of Communication videographer, and Adi Parige, grade 12, were on the sides of the room handling the live video cameras, a new addition to the production this year.
But what about the fashion? Macy’s of Valley Fair and Eli Thomas for Men of Santana Row provided most of the clothing, and the Giants Dugout Store even got into the action for a segment dedicated to our own hometown World Series heroes. A total of 83 student, faculty, staff, parent and alumni models strutted their stuff with confidence and delighted all with their style and personality. Varsity Dance Troupe, Downbeat and Dance Fusion wowed the crowd with stunning routines, and Downbeat also provided a vocal backdrop to the final modeling segment.
At the evening show the fun continued after the fashion portion with a live auction, ably led by Harker favorite Damon Casatico. He cajoled, wheedled and prodded guests to raise paddles for tickets to the Grammy and Emmy awards, spectacular vacation trips, a quilt made by our kindergartners, a flyover with the San Jose Police Department and much more. Guests relaxed their grip on their paddles after the auction and hit the dance floor, enjoying the terrific cover band, The Cheeseballs.
It took only a few days for the exciting totals to be tabulated, and Sue Prutton, fashion show liaison and upper school volunteer director, happily reported that the fundraiser was very successful. The live and online auctions raised $83,270, and our sponsors, advertisers and gift wheel participants contributed $126,730 to the proceeds, which support two main funds: financial assistance through the Financial Aid Fund to students who would otherwise be unable to benefit from a Harker education; and Phase 4 of the capital campaign, including the construction of a theater and gym on the Saratoga campus.