Harker upper school students donated 846 pounds of food to the Second Harvest Food Bank last month. The effort, spearheaded by parent Nina Yeats (Robert, grade 10) and avidly supported by sophomore Lori Berenberg, helped feed the hungry in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, where as many as one in four goes to bed undernourished, according to Second Harvest.
Yeats says the idea to sponsor the drive grew out of a family dinner conversation. “Our family was bouncing around ideas — why donations peak during the holidays, what motivates,” she said. “I made a few inquiries, found interest and registered Harker for the Holiday Food Drive.” Working with Second Harvest and librarian Lauri Vaughan, Yeats arranged for 10 barrels to be dropped off on campus shortly after Thanksgiving.
Not satisfied with a low-key collection effort, Berenberg really got things rolling. “When I realized the can drive was beginning at Harker, I could not just stand by,” said Berenberg, who approached her class dean, Jeffrey Draper. She and Draper came up with the idea to turn the collection into an informal competition between classes. “I put the plan into action. I made posters, labeled the barrels, moved them to convenient locations, spoke at school and class meetings, and posted it on the daily bulletin,” she said.
The barrels were available at morning drop-off curbs, in the library, plus Dobbins and Manzanita halls. Every napkin bin in the Edge was also labeled with a reminder to encourage participation. In the end, the barrels were filled and nearly 700 pounds of food were donated to Second Harvest, the single largest nonprofit provider of food to low-income households in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties and the second largest food bank in the country.
Santaclarabroncos.com, Jan. 6 – Tanya Schmidt ’07 is the subject of a front-page feature story on the Santa Clara Broncos’ website. The article discusses her outstanding performance both as a star volleyball player and as a student; Schmidt currently holds a 3.96 grade point average.
San Jose Mercury News, Dec. 8, 2010 – Grade 12 student and varsity water polo co-captain Chris Ng is named as an honorable mention in the All-Mercury News teams section.
San Jose Mercury News, Nov. 7, 2010 – Columnist Sal Pizarro mentions Harker’s visit by Lady Catherine Longworth, the former Lord Mayor of Westminster, who invited the Harker upper school orchestra to perform at London’s 2012 New Year’s Day parade.
Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal Giving Guide, Nov. 5, 2010 – The magazine places Harker at 11th among the 50 highest-earning nonprofit organizations in Silicon Valley.
Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal, Nov. 5, 2010 – Nichols Hall is named one of the top 25 LEED-certified spaces in Silicon Valley.
National Latin Exam Newsletter, Fall 2010 – 2010 graduate Margaret Woods, now a freshman at Santa Clara University, is mentioned as a recipient of a 2010 National Latin Exam Scholarship.
SeriousEnergy.com – SeriousEnergy, a company specializing in products and services that reduce energy costs, recently published a case study about Harker on its website. Harker and SeriousEnergy have worked together to achieve many of the school’s energy goals.
Jan. 14, 2011
[Update] The middle school boys Varsity A (grade 8) are both league and tournament champs for the first time! “We survived a great effort from Menlo yesterday and prevailed in the tournament championship game 20-14 in overtime,” said coach Mike Delfino. “Menlo did a great job slowing down the tempo, holding the ball for two to three minutes sometimes before shooting, and not allowing us to quicken the tempo of the game.
“Our guys adjusted well, were patient, and took advantage when the opportunities presented themselves. We like to run the ball up and down the court and push the tempo — it’s what we’re most comfortable doing, so it’s a credit to our players to be able to still win a game where they had to adjust to a completely different style of play. Incredibly, the game was tied at 13 after regulation play. Srivinay Irrinki hit a huge three pointer to start the overtime and Eric Holt helped ice the game with some clutch free throws.
It’s the first time a Harker middle school basketball team has ever won the league championship and the WBAL Tournament in the same season,” Delfino noted. Congrats to all the Grade 8 Varsity A basketball players!
Incredibly the game was tied at 13 after regulation. Srivinay Irrinki hit a huge three pointer to start the overtime and Eric Holt helped ice the game with some clutch free throws.
Jan. 13, 2011
[Update] The boys Varsity A team defeated Pinewood 53-38 last night in the semifinals of the WBAL Tournament. Eric Holt led all scorers with 26 points, 16 coming in the first half as the team built an 11 point halftime lead. “I thought all 10 of our guys played very well,” said coach Mike Delifino. “This was the second time in six days we played Pinewood and last week they were much more aggressive than we were and really took it to us. In that game, I thought we were very fortunate to come away with a 2-point win, but last night was different. Our guys were much more aggressive from the start and really did a nice job dictating the tempo of the game, especially on defense where we were able to force a lot of early turnovers. It really was a complete effort on both sides of the ball.” The boys play their final game of the year tonight at Blackford against either Menlo or King’s Academy at 6 p.m. The boys have beaten both those teams in regular season play, so have a good chance of adding the title of tournament champs to their already-earned league champioinship, tonight! See below for details of their exciting season
Jan. 10, 2011
[Update] The middle school boys Varsity A (grade 8) team) finished up a stellar season with a heartbreaker, losing to St. Simon’s on Friday 48-40. The team finished the season 7-1; see below for details. The game Jan. 7 was, “a very good game between two very good teams,” said coach Mike Delfino. “St Simon players were big and fast but it was back and forth all the way. I thought we played very well. We had some chances –we were down just four with about two minutes to play, but missed a couple of key free throws and a couple of shots and couldn’t close the gap.” The team will play in the WBAL post-season tournament starting this week on Wednesday at 5 p.m. at St. Joseph’s.
Jan. 7, 2011
[Update] The middle school boys Varsity A (grade 8) team squeaked by Pinewood to complete league play unbeaten! “It was a battle,” said coach Mike Delfino. “Pinewood played very well. We escaped at the end 29-27. Srivinay Irrinki hit a three-pointer with nine seconds left to win it.” Tonight is the final regular season game against St. Simon of Los Altos at 4 p.m. in the Saratoga campus gym. Come on out and cheer the boys to victory in this tough final match!
Jan. 6, 2011
[Update] The middle school boys Varsity A (grade 8) team has two games left to win to complete an unbeaten season: Pinewood on Thurs., Jan. 6, and St. Simon of Los Altos on Fri., Jan. 7. The Pinewood game is at 4 p. m. at Bucknall and if the boys win they are league champions and unbeaten in league play. If they beat non-league St. Simon, a very good team, according to coach Mike Delfino, that ends their regular season unbeaten. That game is at Saratoga at 4 p.m., and spectators are welcome at both games! The team then plays in a league tournament next week to finish the season.
Jan. 5, 2011
The middle school Varsity A (grade 8) and Varsity B (grade 7 and 8) basketball teams both fought for league titles Jan. 4, with the A team winning 32-17 and the B team going down 24-33. Both games were held at the Blackford campus with a solid crowd of supporters.
The Varsity A game was a showdown with Menlo School that left the Harker team with a 5-0 record in league play with one game left to play against Pinewood this Thursday at Blackford. The team has beaten every team except Pinewood, their last opponent, who already has two losses. That means that even if Harker loses, no other team will have better than a 5-1 record, and even then will have already been beaten by Harker, leaving the league championship squarely in Harker’s hands!
“I’m sure there’s no way we can be caught,” said coach Mike Delfino. “We are now 7-0 overall and that includes a 51-46 win over a very strong Willow Glen Middle School on their home court.”
In Tuesday’s game, “We were able to jump ahead early,” said Delfino. “We were very solid defensively and though we weren’t shooting well, we rebounded well and got a lot of second chance points, allowing us to jump to a 16-2 halftime lead. The second half was a little more back and forth. Menlo closed to within eight points, but then we moved the lead back up to 14 and by the end of the third quarter it was 27-11. Last quarter was a chance to get everyone some playing time and the final was 32-17.”
The team has a tough non-league game against St. Simon on Friday, Jan. 7, and the league tournament follows next week, but pairings won’t be available until at least Friday as teams finish their final games. “I can tell you that we should be the top seed and probably will have a first round bye,” said Delfino.
“The tournament (next week) doesn’t determine a league champion,” Delfino continued. “That is done during the season. This is a separate tournament involving the teams in our league where they seed according to their season finish.”
Delfino noted the team has earned its kudos this season. “I know the chance at an undefeated season would mean a lot to the kids, and let me emphasize that the success the boys have had this year is entirely due to their hard work and efforts,” he said. “They are a wonderful group to coach. They know when to have fun and when to be ready to play.
“The fact that the boys were lucky enough to win the league title is completely a reflection on them. They made it happen; I was just along for the ride. They are truly a terrific bunch of young men. Individually, I’d like to acknowledge the efforts of Eric Holt and Srivinay Irrinki, whose performances have been clutch all year. Also, I would like to commend Avik Wadhwa and Vamsi Gadiraju, not only for their solid efforts in the win over Menlo but for their contributions all year long. It’s really been a team effort,” Delfino concluded.
Hundreds of lucky Harry Potter fans and their friends and families were treated to an advance screening of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1” on Nov. 18, one day before the film opened to the public. The 558-seat theater at the Century 22 in San Jose was filled to capacity for the screening of the movie, the first in a two-part series based on the novel of the same name, which is the final installment of the “Harry Potter” book franchise.
In December, upper school students Daniela Lapidous and Shreya Indukuri, both grade 11, were featured in a segment on the Comcast Sports Net Bay Area program “49ers Total Access for Kids,” which is hosted by kids and geared toward young San Francisco 49ers fans.
Lapidous and Indukuri appeared on the show to talk about the green initiatives they were instrumental in enacting after receiving a grant from the Alliance for Climate Education (ACE) in 2009. The green projects featured included the organic garden and the smart meters that were installed at the Saratoga campus to monitor energy usage. The show also briefly touched on the green roof at Nichols Hall.
The entire episode can be viewed at the 49ers Total Access for Kids website. The segment featuring the girls begins 11 minutes into the program.
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, which featured riser choreography by Gail Palmer, lower school performing arts teacher, which made the singing numbers a visual as well as audio treat throughout the show. The show began with the second and third graders collaborating for the opening number, “December Nights.” From there, grade 2 students sang their portion of the show, which included songs such as “Over the River and Through the Woods” and “Jingle Bells,” as well as a tune called “Piñata,” which featured grade 2 English, math and social studies teachers Judi Beil, Jeanette Bhatia, Enni Chen and Kimberly Sandoval swinging at piñatas suspended above the stage.
After the second graders concluded their set, the third grade dance squad performed an entertaining routine to Johnny Marks and the Hit Crew’s “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas,” choreographed by Kristin Maurer, after-school dance teacher.
The grade 3 singers took the stage shortly after to perform some a special selection of songs, including “Arbolito,” which was sung entirely in Spanish and featured lower school Spanish teacher Anita Gilbert on vocals, music teachers Toni and Paul Woodruff on violin and piano, respectively, as well as four student instrumentalists: cellist Rachel Broweleit, violinist Gabriel Chai, violinist Kyle Li and cellist Jeffrey Yang. For “The Little Snowflake,” Walid Fahmy, lower school P.E. teacher, Kathleen Ferretti, grade 2 and grade 3 department chair, Heidi Gough, grade 3 social studies teacher, Jim McGovern grade 3 and 4 P.E. teacher and Heather Russell, grade 2 and 3 English, creative writing and math teacher, all took the stage dressed as snowflakes and danced for the crowd’s entertainment.
For the final performance, both classes once again took the stage to seeing “Around the World at Holiday Time” and the grand finale, “Jingle Bell Rock.”
Whitney McClelland designed the attractive scenery for the show, while Danny Dunn, lower school performing arts technical director, along with students from her middle school Tech Club and her grade 5 technical theater class, made sure the show ran smoothly and with minimal delay.
Famed beach volleyball player and two-time Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh visited the Blackford campus on Dec. 21 to give a pair of volleyball clinics to middle and lower school students. A Bay Area native and volleyball star since college, Walsh attended Archbishop Mitty High School and won national titles in 1996 and 1997 while at Stanford University. With her teammate Misty May-Treanor, Walsh was awarded Sportswoman of the Year from the Women’s Sports Foundation in 2004 and 2006. The appearance was arranged with the help of Harker volleyball coach Theresa “Smitty” Smith, a long-time friend of Walsh’s.
“It was really amazing because she’s like my role model and I want to be just like her when I’m older,” said Shannon Richardson, grade 7.
Walsh ran the students through several warm-up exercises and drills, having them work on fundamental aspects of the game such as passing and setting.
“I think fundamentals get glossed over a little bit,” Walsh said. “I feel like, especially at this age level, you need to take the time to really just break the game down.”
Students spent a significant portion of the lesson in pairs, passing and setting the ball to each other. In another exercise, Walsh hit the ball toward each student, who then made an attempt to keep the ball from touching the floor, a skill known as digging. After working rigorously on ball control, the focus shifted briefly to hitting and spiking.
Ball control, Walsh said, is especially important for young volleyball players to learn, and said she noticed improvement in the students’ ball control as the clinic progressed. “If you have great ball control, that means you’ll be an asset to any team,” she said.
“She gave a lot of good advice to us,” said Doreen Kang, grade 7. “It’ll help me a lot.”
Walsh’s biggest piece of advice to the students was to believe in themselves: “Don’t be afraid to look silly and take risks, because that’s when you become great, when you take those risks, and learn from your mistakes.”
Grade 1 students provided plenty of holiday cheer to the audience at the Bucknall theater, during the First Grade Holiday Concert on Dec. 14.
Directed by Louis Hoffman, lower school music teacher, with riser choreography by Gail Palmer, lower school performing arts teacher, the entire first grade class sang a diverse repertoire of holiday-themed songs, including “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” “Deck the Halls” and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” and also performed some lesser-known tunes such as “Candy Candy,” “Shine Little Candle” and a medley of traditional songs about Hanukkah. In between performances, students periodically spoke a few lines of amusing dialog.
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, the audience was delighted to see grade 1 homeroom teachers Rita Stone, Cindy Proctor, Diann Chung and Mary Holaday take the stage during the song “Gingerbread Cookies,” dancing with giant gingerbread cookie cut-outs.
Elaborate stage scenery courtesy of scenic artist Whitney McLelland enhanced the ambiance of the show, as did the lovely array of poinsettias provided for the show by Sarah Leonard, lower school division head. Danny Dunn, lower school technical director, as well as her middle school tech club handled the slide show and props, while the students in her grade 5 technical theater class acted as the show crew.
Following the show, students and parents attended a special after-party at the Bucknall gym, where they enjoyed cookies, hot chocolate and a special appearance by Frosty the Snowman.
Harker dancers are dancing in both the San Jose and San Francisco productions of “The Nutcracker” this year. At least eight students, from all three campuses, are participating, and more seem to turn up daily.
Katherine Dow, grade 2, is a mouse in this year’s Ballet San Jose production of the eternal children’s classic. “I have been dancing for four years, since I was three. This is my second year with Ballet San Jose,” and her first appearance in a production, she said. “The most fun thing about being a mouse in the ‘Nutcracker’ is jumping on the soldiers during my dance.”
One grade 3 student, Mimi Campbell, also a mouse, is doing it for the second year in a row. She has been taking ballet for almost six years, and is in her third year at Ballet San Jose School. She said “Dancing onstage for a big audience, fighting with and jumping on the soldiers in the mouse battle!” are the most memorable parts of being in the production.
Classmate Andrew Cheplansky, also grade 3, dances the part of Fritz. He started ballet because his sister, grade 5 student Anastasia, had been attending ballet school and their busy parents needed to consolidate their children’s activities to keep life manageable. “In the beginning Andrew did not like doing ballet,” said his mother, Marina Ovchinnikov, “but with Andrew’s progress and ballet teacher’s encouragement Andrew’s attitude has changed and he enjoys doing ballet now – but not as much as playing soccer or ice hockey.” Andrew’s credits at the Ballet San Jose include “Romeo and Juliet” as the son of a vegetable seller and “Giselle” as a village child.
Though not in this production, Anastasia has been doing ballet for about eight years and had roles in “The Nutcracker” as a mouse; “Coppelia” as the daughter of a flower seller; the title role in “Ugly Duckling”; and “Giselle” as a village child.
Another third grader, Charlotte Brezoczky, joined her sister, Emma, grade 5, in the Ballet San Jose production this year, both as mice. Charlotte has been training since she was three years old and this is her first professional production, “but I also love singing and dancing,” she said. “I was just cast as the King of the Monkeys in ‘The Jungle Book,’ and have been in productions of ‘Annie,’ ‘The Grinch Who Stole Christmas’ and ‘Aladdin.’” For Charlotte, “dancing with the company – that I get to be in a real show dancing with the professional company,” is the most fun!
Sister Emma is a five-time veteran of the Ballet San Jose production, and has been dancing for seven years. “When I was two-and-a-half years old my parents took me to ‘The Nutcracker’ and I told my mom that I wanted to be a mouse!” She has only danced “The Nutcracker” professionally, but “this year, I was very excited to be able to dance with Dance Fusion at Harker,” she said. This year, the entire grade 5 class will attend “The Nutcracker” and “I’m really glad that the fifth grade class gets to see me dance this year! In all the years I’ve been in ‘The Nutcracker,’ this is the first year my classmates have been able to see me.” In addition to that thrill, Emma loves “just being on stage; I feel happy and it is fun. I also have been able to meet some of the professional dancers, like Willie (Anderson) – the Mouse King – and he is a really nice and a really good dancer.”
Charlotte and Emma’s mom, Kelly Lewis Brezoczky, said what she likes is “the girls get the opportunity to be in a professional show working together as a team. ‘Nutcracker’ auditions are in late September and this team of mice rehearse together every Saturday for two months getting ready for this production. They support each other and learn to work together as a unit on stage. It’s about the sum of the parts being greater than the whole, and I think that is a great lesson for the children who participate. The professional dancers are also really great mentors to the kids. They love dancing with them!”
One of Emma’s classmates, Lauren Luspo, will also get the thrill of knowing her classmates have seen the production. She, too, has been dancing since age 3 and is in “The Nutcracker” for the third time. “We started practicing ‘Nutcracker’ Oct. 2 for two hours every Saturday. This is in addition to my three hours of ballet classes per week,” she said. “Rehearsals were hectic last week.”
Luspo doesn’t mind the long hours, though. “I’m passionate about ballet. Like playing the piano, when I am on stage I forget about being shy. Being in ‘Nutcracker’ is so much fun! I also learn discipline and focus. I think it helps me be a better student!
“I also have a ballet family and some of them are already from Harker! I make lots of new friends. Most of all, I get to rehearse with the lead characters like Maria and the Mouse King! I enjoy ‘Nutcracker’ – I just wished all the Harker students were all together in the same cast! I look forward to doing it every year!”
Helena Dworak, grade 7, will perform with the San Francisco Ballet’s production of “The Nutcracker” for her second year in a row, playing a member of the cavalry. Dworak trained for six years with the San Jose Ballet and was in their production of “The Nutcracker” for four years. One year, she traveled to China with the San Jose Ballet to dance in “The Firebird.”
One thing she particularly enjoys about ballet is the thrill of seeing world-class performers onstage. “Watching world-famous dancers perform on the stage from backstage or the wings is an amazing experience,” she said. “It provides a different perspective from a private angle.”
As much as Dworak enjoys ballet, she admits that it requires a lot of hard work. “Ballet may look like a delicate activity, but the training required is physically and emotionally intense,” she said.
Two girls in the upper school are in the production, both as snowflakes. Angela Ma, grade 9, and Sara Howells, grade 11, have been dancing since they were four and three, respectively. At age 14, Ma has been dancing for nine years. “Throughout these years, I participated in many BSJ (Ballet San Jose) productions,” said Ma, which have included parts in “Giselle” and “The Toreador,” both as a village child, and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” where she played a fairy.
“I enjoy the professional experience I gained from these performances,” said Ma. “Ballet has introduced me to many dancers, each with a beautiful personality. I find that I can learn something from everyone, the students and the professional company dancers.
“BSJ has been the birthplace of many of my favorite memories,” Ma said, “from standing for the first time at the incredibly high barres to learning to dance in pointe shoes to performing in a professional production. As I grow up, the barres no longer seem so high and the teachers become a part of my family. This is my first year playing the part of a ‘Snowflake’ in the BSJ company production of “The Nutcracker” and I look forward to it.”
Howells has been at Ballet San Jose school since 1998. She took an 18-month break from ballet to play sports, but, “I missed ballet too much and quickly returned to BSJ school,” she said.
“I was a mouse in ‘The Nutcracker’ twice, and a snowflake last year,” Howell said. “I also understudied the corps de ballet section of ‘Giselle,’ and have performed in various BSJ School end-of-the-year productions.” She also noted that over the past summer she attended the Boston Ballet School Summer Dance Program, “which was a great opportunity to improve and grow as a dancer and to meet other ballet students from all over the country.”
The dedication and hard work each of these dancers has put in is apparent, and the ballet mistress of the BSJ School, Dalia Rawson, sends special thanks to Harker. “I am responsible for rehearsing both the snowflakes and the mice, and I am sincerely grateful to the faculty and administration of The Harker School,” she said, thanking Harker on behalf of BSJ’s artistic staff “for support that has been shown to these students, especially Sarah Howells and Angela Ma who needed to reschedule some finals to accommodate our theater schedule. I am gratified that these talented students can continue to excel artistically at Ballet San Jose while following a rigorous academic schedule, and sincerely appreciate Harker for allowing these students to pursue professional ballet training and performance experience.”
Long hours bring rich rewards, though. For Howells, “the most memorable performance experience I have had was the first time I danced as a snowflake, with the falling fake snow and the scenery and costume, which made that experience the most exhilarating of the many performances I have been in.” The role is one she has long aspired to. “I have always wanted to be a snowflake in “The Nutcracker,” which I have finally achieved!” she said.
In keeping with the giving spirit of the holiday season, the lower school’s annual holiday toy drive delivered 925 toys to Sacred Heart Community Service in San Jose on the afternoon of Dec. 16. Grade 4 students loaded up a Harker delivery truck, which transported the toys from the Bucknall campus to Sacred Heart. There, members of the grade 4 student council helped unload the toys and received a tour of Sacred Heart’s facilities.
Toys donated included “sports equipment, board games, stuffed animals and all the popular toys of the season,” said Joe Connolly, lower school dean of students. “We even had toys that were purchased at FAO Schwarz.” Harker tech support manager Jesse Lara donated more than 125 toys from his personal collection to help the cause. “He originally collected them as an investment, but decided that boys and girls should play with them,” Connolly said. He later thanked the Harker community for its generosity, saying that Sacred Heart was “thrilled” with amount of toys they received. The donations will play a big part in assisting the 5,000 families that Sacred Heart will serve this holiday season.
“I continue to be touched by the incredible generosity of our parents and students,” Connolly said. “We organize these service projects so the children may realize the wonderful feeling of giving to others. It is uplifting to be able to partner with our parents in this worthy cause.”