The Rothschild Performing Arts Center opened tonight to an excited crowd of nearly 700 visitors. The state-of-the-art facility opened its doors at 6:30 p.m. to a throng of students, parents, faculty and staff, alumni, alumni parents and guests.
Guests included Jeff and Marieke Rothschild, for whom the facility is named, and Suhas and Jayashree Patil, daughter Dr. Teja Patil ’02, family members DJ and Devika Patil and their children, Veyd grade 6 and Samaara, grade 3, for whom the 450-seat theater is named. Other guests of honor included Diana Nichols, board of trustees chair, and members of the architectural and construction teams, as well as many of the major donors.
“It is a gorgeous building,” said Marieke Rothschild. “Harker has been known for its STEM students, and deservedly so, but the talent that is here in the arts – this gives them a home. It reminds me of the Bing Concert Hall (Stanford University) and the smaller theaters in New York. It is 450 seats, it is a good sized theater, but it is intimate.”
Diana Nichols, board chair, consultant to Harker and lifetime trustee, spoke eloquently on the passion the performing arts department faculty bring to their students: “Their talent their motivation, their ability to inspire students and move them to greater heights.” She went on to thank the donors along with the multitude of others, from architects to builders that helped make the 50,000-square-foot center possible, singling out Joe Rosenthal, executive director of advancement, for his years of work on the $45 million capital campaign for the performing arts center and the athletic center that opened in August.
Head of School Brian Yager then conducted the ribbon cutting, done in three sections by donors, faculty and staff, and the architects and builders.
“Our main program,” Yager noted, “is to prepare kids for success in college and life, as well as to take their place as global citizens – those are the two bookends of our mission. The arts and performing arts are essential to both elements. In terms of preparing them for success in their own lives, performing arts open incredible opportunities for kids, not just professionally, but in terms of exploring who they are, understanding themselves and the world around them. That blends into the second part, which is making a difference in the world. You have to have an appreciation for others, for beauty and for the creative process to make a difference and this building provides a great platform for gaining that appreciation.”
As the doors opened, the crowd flowed into the building, filling the theater for the very first time. In a moment that sent a chill down the spine, in a darkened house, the show began with Laura Lang-Ree, chair of the performing arts department rising up from the orchestra pit, singing a few lines from that old show tune, “There’s No Business Like Show Business.” Check out this video of the show!
Following opening remarks by Lang-Ree and Jeff Draper, drama teacher (and a delicious pass across the stage by Karl Kuehn, dance teacher!), the very first act performed on the new stage was by Suhas and Jayashree along with their grandchildren, Veyd and Samaara, dancing to “Never Knew Love Like This Before.”
Next, Dr. Teja Patil, who was in the first graduating class from Harker upper school and an original member of the Harker Conservatory who performed in many Harker shows, took the stage and delivered heartfelt remarks that dovetailed beautifully with Yager’s comment. She noted that Draper’s instructions to her as a performer were instrumental in her development. Following his insightful instructions to seek to move the audience while on stage one day, “I felt so powerful and confident and inspired,” she said. “So much of growing up is about gaining confidence, it is about learning how to express yourself and Harker theater did that for me.”
She went on to note that, “Theater … really helps you to understand other people. Theater builds empathy. When you ask a child to play a character, you are really asking them to think deeply about someone outside of them self. It is emotional. It is a different kind of learning. Through that kind of transformative experience, you build your emotional intelligence. You gain empathy.”
Patil noted that as a doctor at the Stanford Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, she deals with men aged 60 to 100, people quite different than herself. “They lived, sometimes, quite difficult lives. They have fought for our country. It is not just my job to care for them, but to connect to them. Everything I know about understanding other people, feeling empathy, my emotional intelligence, it was built here, not in biology class, but here, in the theater. This space is physical proof that Harker cares about raising the whole, caring, emotionally intelligent, well-rounded student.”
Three great performances followed Patil, showcasing the great acoustics of the auditorium. First was a piece by Mindy Truong, grade 4, rendering a truly incredible version of ”Fantaisie-Impromptu, Op. 66” by Frédéric Chopin on one of the features of the new center, a Bösendorfer piano.
Two alumni working in performing arts took the stage in turn, starting with Michelle Holt ’11, a Harker vocal conservatory certificate graduate who went on to The Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Holt, who will be trying out for Opera San Jose this spring, sang “Regnava nel Silenzio,” from “Lucia di Lammermoor.”
John Ammatuna ’11, a musical theater Conservatory certificate graduate who attended Marymount Manhattan College for musical theater, is currently working on Broadway as “Brother Bear.” Ammatuna reprised a tune from “Pippin,” the upper school musical he and Holt both played in in 2011, singing “Corner of the Sky.”
Both singers were accompanied by Catherine Snider of the performing arts department, an accomplished pianist and musical director, on the Bösendorfer.
The audience was enthralled, and applauded each act and video in turn.
Marieke Rothschild had some inspiring words for those thinking of trying a performing art: “Don’t be afraid to fail, go out there and fail, go out there and carry that tune, just do it! And if you don’t want to be on stage, then be behind the scenes. The arts have so much to offer, there is so much there! You don’t have to be a star, just try it!”
The Rothschild Performing Arts Center opened tonight to an excited crowd of nearly 700 visitors. The state-of-the-art facility opened its doors at 6:30 p.m. to a throng of students, parents, faculty and staff, alumni, alumni parents and guests.
Guests included Jeff and Marieke Rothschild, for whom the facility is named, and Suhas and Jayashree Patil, daughter Dr. Teja Patil ’02, family members DJ and Devika Patil and their children, Veyd grade 6 and Samaara, grade 3, for whom the 450-seat theater is named. Other guests of honor included Diana Nichols, board of trustees chair, and members of the architectural and construction teams, as well as many of the major donors.
“It is a gorgeous building,” said Marieke Rothschild. “Harker has been known for its STEM students, and deservedly so, but the talent that is here in the arts – this gives them a home. It reminds me of the Bing Concert Hall (Stanford University) and the smaller theaters in New York. It is 450 seats, it is a good sized theater, but it is intimate.”
Diana Nichols, board chair, consultant to Harker and lifetime trustee, spoke eloquently on the passion the performing arts department faculty bring to their students: “Their talent their motivation, their ability to inspire students and move them to greater heights.” She went on to thank the donors along with the multitude of others, from architects to builders that helped make the 50,000-square-foot center possible, singling out Joe Rosenthal, executive director of advancement, for his years of work on the $45 million capital campaign for the performing arts center and the athletic center that opened in August.
Head of School Brian Yager then conducted the ribbon cutting, done in three sections by donors, faculty and staff, and the architects and builders.
“Our main program,” Yager noted, “is to prepare kids for success in college and life, as well as to take their place as global citizens – those are the two bookends of our mission. The arts and performing arts are essential to both elements. In terms of preparing them for success in their own lives, performing arts open incredible opportunities for kids, not just professionally, but in terms of exploring who they are, understanding themselves and the world around them. That blends into the second part, which is making a difference in the world. You have to have an appreciation for others, for beauty and for the creative process to make a difference and this building provides a great platform for gaining that appreciation.”
As the doors opened, the crowd flowed into the building, filling the theater for the very first time. In a moment that sent a chill down the spine, in a darkened house, the show began with Laura Lang-Ree, chair of the performing arts department rising up from the orchestra pit, singing a few lines from that old show tune, “There’s No Business Like Show Business.” Check out this video of the show!
Following opening remarks by Lang-Ree and Jeff Draper, drama teacher (and a delicious pass across the stage by Karl Kuehn, dance teacher!), the very first act performed on the new stage was by Suhas and Jayashree along with their grandchildren, Veyd and Samaara, dancing to “Never Knew Love Like This Before.”
Next, Dr. Teja Patil, who was in the first graduating class from Harker upper school and an original member of the Harker Conservatory who performed in many Harker shows, took the stage and delivered heartfelt remarks that dovetailed beautifully with Yager’s comment. She noted that Draper’s instructions to her as a performer were instrumental in her development. Following his insightful instructions to seek to move the audience while on stage one day, “I felt so powerful and confident and inspired,” she said. “So much of growing up is about gaining confidence, it is about learning how to express yourself and Harker theater did that for me.”
She went on to note that, “Theater … really helps you to understand other people. Theater builds empathy. When you ask a child to play a character, you are really asking them to think deeply about someone outside of them self. It is emotional. It is a different kind of learning. Through that kind of transformative experience, you build your emotional intelligence. You gain empathy.”
Patil noted that as a doctor at the Stanford Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, she deals with men aged 60 to 100, people quite different than herself. “They lived, sometimes, quite difficult lives. They have fought for our country. It is not just my job to care for them, but to connect to them. Everything I know about understanding other people, feeling empathy, my emotional intelligence, it was built here, not in biology class, but here, in the theater. This space is physical proof that Harker cares about raising the whole, caring, emotionally intelligent, well-rounded student.”
Three great performances followed Patil, showcasing the great acoustics of the auditorium. First was a piece by Mindy Truong, grade 4, rendering a truly incredible version of ”Fantaisie-Impromptu, Op. 66” by Frédéric Chopin on one of the features of the new center, a Bösendorfer piano.
Two alumni working in performing arts took the stage in turn, starting with Michelle Holt ’11, a Harker vocal conservatory certificate graduate who went on to The Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Holt, who will be trying out for Opera San Jose this spring, sang “Regnava nel Silenzio,” from “Lucia di Lammermoor.”
John Ammatuna ’11, a musical theater Conservatory certificate graduate who attended Marymount Manhattan College for musical theater, is currently working on Broadway as “Brother Bear.” Ammatuna reprised a tune from “Pippin,” the upper school musical he and Holt both played in in 2011, singing “Corner of the Sky.”
Both singers were accompanied by Catherine Snider of the performing arts department, an accomplished pianist and musical director, on the Bösendorfer.
The audience was enthralled, and applauded each act and video in turn.
Marieke Rothschild had some inspiring words for those thinking of trying a performing art: “Don’t be afraid to fail, go out there and fail, go out there and carry that tune, just do it! And if you don’t want to be on stage, then be behind the scenes. The arts have so much to offer, there is so much there! You don’t have to be a star, just try it!”
The Rothschild Performing Arts Center opened tonight to an excited crowd of nearly 700 visitors. The state-of-the-art facility opened its doors at 6:30 p.m. to a throng of students, parents, faculty and staff, alumni, alumni parents and guests.
Guests included Jeff and Marieke Rothschild, for whom the facility is named, and Suhas and Jayashree Patil, daughter Dr. Teja Patil ’02, family members DJ and Devika Patil and their children, Veyd grade 6 and Samaara, grade 3, for whom the 450-seat theater is named. Other guests of honor included Diana Nichols, board of trustees chair, and members of the architectural and construction teams, as well as many of the major donors.
“It is a gorgeous building,” said Marieke Rothschild. “Harker has been known for its STEM students, and deservedly so, but the talent that is here in the arts – this gives them a home. It reminds me of the Bing Concert Hall (Stanford University) and the smaller theaters in New York. It is 450 seats, it is a good sized theater, but it is intimate.”
Diana Nichols, board chair, consultant to Harker and lifetime trustee, spoke eloquently on the passion the performing arts department faculty bring to their students: “Their talent their motivation, their ability to inspire students and move them to greater heights.” She went on to thank the donors along with the multitude of others, from architects to builders that helped make the 50,000-square-foot center possible, singling out Joe Rosenthal, executive director of advancement, for his years of work on the $45 million capital campaign for the performing arts center and the athletic center that opened in August.
Head of School Brian Yager then conducted the ribbon cutting, done in three sections by donors, faculty and staff, and the architects and builders.
“Our main program,” Yager noted, “is to prepare kids for success in college and life, as well as to take their place as global citizens – those are the two bookends of our mission. The arts and performing arts are essential to both elements. In terms of preparing them for success in their own lives, performing arts open incredible opportunities for kids, not just professionally, but in terms of exploring who they are, understanding themselves and the world around them. That blends into the second part, which is making a difference in the world. You have to have an appreciation for others, for beauty and for the creative process to make a difference and this building provides a great platform for gaining that appreciation.”
As the doors opened, the crowd flowed into the building, filling the theater for the very first time. In a moment that sent a chill down the spine, in a darkened house, the show began with Laura Lang-Ree, chair of the performing arts department rising up from the orchestra pit, singing a few lines from that old show tune, “There’s No Business Like Show Business.” Check out this video of the show!
Following opening remarks by Lang-Ree and Jeff Draper, drama teacher (and a delicious pass across the stage by Karl Kuehn, dance teacher!), the very first act performed on the new stage was by Suhas and Jayashree along with their grandchildren, Veyd and Samaara, dancing to “Never Knew Love Like This Before.”
Next, Dr. Teja Patil, who was in the first graduating class from Harker upper school and an original member of the Harker Conservatory who performed in many Harker shows, took the stage and delivered heartfelt remarks that dovetailed beautifully with Yager’s comment. She noted that Draper’s instructions to her as a performer were instrumental in her development. Following his insightful instructions to seek to move the audience while on stage one day, “I felt so powerful and confident and inspired,” she said. “So much of growing up is about gaining confidence, it is about learning how to express yourself and Harker theater did that for me.”
She went on to note that, “Theater … really helps you to understand other people. Theater builds empathy. When you ask a child to play a character, you are really asking them to think deeply about someone outside of them self. It is emotional. It is a different kind of learning. Through that kind of transformative experience, you build your emotional intelligence. You gain empathy.”
Patil noted that as a doctor at the Stanford Palo Alto Veterans Hospital, she deals with men aged 60 to 100, people quite different than herself. “They lived, sometimes, quite difficult lives. They have fought for our country. It is not just my job to care for them, but to connect to them. Everything I know about understanding other people, feeling empathy, my emotional intelligence, it was built here, not in biology class, but here, in the theater. This space is physical proof that Harker cares about raising the whole, caring, emotionally intelligent, well-rounded student.”
Three great performances followed Patil, showcasing the great acoustics of the auditorium. First was a piece by Mindy Truong, grade 4, rendering a truly incredible version of ”Fantaisie-Impromptu, Op. 66” by Frédéric Chopin on one of the features of the new center, a Bösendorfer piano.
Two alumni working in performing arts took the stage in turn, starting with Michelle Holt ’11, a Harker vocal conservatory certificate graduate who went on to The Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Holt, who will be trying out for Opera San Jose this spring, sang “Regnava nel Silenzio,” from “Lucia di Lammermoor.”
John Ammatuna ’11, a musical theater Conservatory certificate graduate who attended Marymount Manhattan College for musical theater, is currently working on Broadway as “Brother Bear.” Ammatuna reprised a tune from “Pippin,” the upper school musical he and Holt both played in in 2011, singing “Corner of the Sky.”
Both singers were accompanied by Catherine Snider of the performing arts department, an accomplished pianist and musical director, on the Bösendorfer.
The audience was enthralled, and applauded each act and video in turn.
Marieke Rothschild had some inspiring words for those thinking of trying a performing art: “Don’t be afraid to fail, go out there and fail, go out there and carry that tune, just do it! And if you don’t want to be on stage, then be behind the scenes. The arts have so much to offer, there is so much there! You don’t have to be a star, just try it!”
This article originally appeared in the winter 2017 issue of Harker Magazine.
After Charlottesville, Va., erupted in violence during a white supremacist rally in August, Jessica Dickinson Goodman ’07 donned her Captain America shirt, made a sign that read “You Lost in 1865, You Lost in 1945, You Will Lose in 2017” and attended a solidarity event at San Jose City Hall.
“It’s heartbreaking, because there are people whose bodies and minds are damaged by racist violence in Charlottesville today,” Dickinson Goodman told Univision when she was interviewed for a story. “Being American means always trying to do better – acknowledging the abuses without celebrating abusers, understanding the worst parts of our history and doing everything we can to avoid repeating them. Always trying to do better.”
Dickinson Goodman has a thing for superheroes, in fiction and in real life. Her own superpower is passion, which she puts to work every day.
“She is irrepressible, well-reasoned, and always addressing inequality and injustice!” raved Susan Nace, a music teacher at Harker. “She is willing to put in the work necessary to foment positive change.”
Dickinson Goodman took classes with Nace and was a member of Cantilena, Harker’s classical women’s choir, which sang songs in different languages.
“She let me put other languages in my mouth and I learned how much I enjoyed this,” remembered Dickinson Goodman, who speaks Arabic and Spanish, and claims that her ethnicity is “geek.”
While at Harker, Dickinson Goodman was also captain of the wrestling team, secretary/treasurer of the Gay Straight Alliance and a participant in National Junior Classical League. She met her husband, Matthew Holmes ’07, at Harker and the two have been together since.
After Harker, Dickinson Goodman moved to Pennsylvania to attend Carnegie Mellon University, while Holmes trekked to Virginia to study at William & Mary.
While at Carnegie Mellon, Dickinson Goodman studied abroad in Doha, Qatar, participated in the Taekwondo and Shito-Ryu Karate Do Club, and earned a minor in vocal performance. She was invited to participate in the college’s prestigious Fifth Year Scholar program, which allows distinguished students to continue their studies for an additional year tuition-free. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 2012 with a Bachelor of Science in ethics, history and public policy.
Armed with an education and a passion for learning, Dickinson Goodman launched her career by working in the nonprofit sector and politics, in Washington, D.C., Washington state, and back home in California for Attorney General Kamala Harris.
“Though Jessica is extremely brilliant and hard-working, it is her genuine selflessness and desire to help others grow that sets her apart,” said Brady Dempsey, who worked with Dickinson Goodman at Washington, D.C.-based Polaris, which fights human trafficking.
Her ability to approach life with an open heart and a strong mind has led her to present workshops around the globe, from “How to Get Involved Politically” in the Bay Area to “Technology 101” in the Middle East.
“She relates to everyone and that ability is not limited to language, geographical, political, and socio-economic or other boundaries,” said Nace. “She is always able to find common ground!”
Last summer Dickinson Goodman and her mom/role model, Katy, went to Sierra Leone to teach web design and internet research to youth and women.
Her Instagram feed is teeming with striking images and philosophical musings about her trip, including, “Sierra Leone is one of the most religiously welcoming countries I’ve ever been to – we bought bowls yesterday at a storefront sandwiched between ‘Christ In Me Enterprise’ and ‘Allah is Great Enterprise.’”
Dickinson Goodman has helped with a U.S. State Department program called TechWomen that brings women from the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia to Silicon Valley for month-long internships. She’s traveled on a delegation with them to Jordan and this year she is the impact coach for a cohort of Palestinian women.
She is also the outreach and marketing coordinator for Child Advocates of Silicon Valley where she recruits volunteer mentors for more than 1,000 foster youth in Silicon Valley.
Although she doesn’t earn a living in politics anymore, she’s still passionate about being involved in the political process and is constantly advocating for people to work on a campaign.
“There’s nothing better than helping someone get elected,” said Dickinson Goodman, who has canvassed multiple neighborhoods for more than one candidate. “When you get involved, you are not just a volunteer but a change agent, and there’s incredible energy from serving your community.”
She has a passion for life – one that’s filled with action, hope and belief that we can all be change agents.
Contributor Vikki Bowes-Mok is also the executive director of the community nonprofit Compass Collective.
This article originally appeared in the winter 2017 issue of Harker Magazine.
Compiled by Kristina Alaniz, alumni director, The Harker School
Alumni from all classes through 1997 are listed under the years they would have completed grade 8 at The Harker School, Harker Academy, Harker Day School or Palo Alto Military Academy (PAMA). For all classes after the Class of 1997, alumni are listed under the class years they would have graduated from high school, regardless of whether they completed high school studies at Harker. For unlisted classes, we invite you to email alumni@harker.org if you are interested in becoming a class agent or would like to nominate a classmate. All photos submitted by the subject unless noted.
1990
Chris Yamashita, founder of the locally famed Brown Chicken Brown Cow in Campbell, was awarded The San Jose Mercury News’ 2017 Best Burger in the Bay title.
1996
Sam Lepler, middle school graduate and current Harker upper school teacher, received the Teacher of the Year award from the California Association of School Economics Teachers (CASET). Read more on this story in our student publication, Harker Aquila: https://harkeraquila.com/38875/news/economics-teacher-samuel-lepler-receives-california-teacher-of-the-year-award-from-caset/
2002
The upper school’s inaugural graduating class celebrated its 15-year reunion in style at the Anchor Brewing Distillery in San Francisco. In attendance were Isabella Liu, Paul Picazo, Heather Browning, Vijay Nayak, Tiffany Duong, Ben Hu, Sameep Lad, Akhsar Kharebov and Joe Rosenthal , executive director of advancement.
2003
Kari [Saltzman] Snell and her husband, Jason, welcomed twins, Dextor and Maddox Snell. They join big sister Kiora.
Deepa Mathew and her husband, Nishant Goyal, welcomed their first child, Kian Mathew Goyal, born Aug. 22, 2017.
Vivek Saraswat was married to Neha Vyas in August at the Vintners Inn in Sonoma County. They met at the Stanford Graduate School of Business where they bonded over their mutual love of singing, and received their MBAs in 2014. They are now living in San Francisco and working at tech startups.
2005
On Nov. 11, Shikha Mittal married Jameel Khalfan, almost exactly six years after the day they met. They were introduced by Shikha’s Harker classmate Suhaas Prasad at the birthday party of yet another Harker classmate – and Shikha’s best friend – Ruchi Jhaveri. Jameel proposed to Shikha in an elaborate treasure hunt that started in San Francisco and ended in Los Angeles, atop the SLS Hotel’s rooftop pool, the venue of their six-month anniversary. The wedding occurred in Palm Springs and started with a Coachella/Burning Man-themed sangeet. Pictured standing left to right are Karun Amar, Jhaveri, Khalfan, Mittal, Arjun Naskar, Arjun’s date; on the ground are Prasad and Bharat Reddy.
After playing Cordelia in “King Lear” at The Guthrie earlier this year, Kimberley Wong is currently working at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, where she just closed a successful run of “Hamlet” in her dream role, Ophelia. She is about to open their Christmas production, “Miss Bennet: Christmas at
Pemberley.” She was also seen this fall on HBO’s “The Deuce” as a recurring character, a bartender named Suzi.
Alan Malek and Yuanyuan Pao ‘07 were married March 25 at the Cornerstone Sonoma, an event venue at the junction of Napa and Sonoma counties.
2006
Meghana Dhar was included on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list. Meghana is responsible for opening 700 stores for B8ta by 2018. The company launches brick and mortar stores for trendy tech products and provides them with customer engagement and interaction data.
2007
Jenny Ma and Andrew Fandrianto were married on July 7, 2017 in Oahu, Hawaii. “We’ve been best friends since middle school and would often spend most of our lunches and after-school hours playing handball.” In attendance were (all Class of 2007 unless otherwise noted) Alex Fandrianto ’08, Anthony Fandrianto ’11, Michael Ma ’14, Alex Wu, Jay Han, Michael Chaykin, Alexander Hansen and Tiffany Lin.
Jessica Dickinson Goodman has been accepted as a Fellow with the New Leaders Council for 2018, a program that trains and supports the next generation of progressive leaders. ”My application focused on my experiences working in government as a scheduler for now-U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris and staffing the chair of the Washington State Appropriations Committee during a constitutional budget crisis; my international work supporting women’s empowerment, including teaching classes to bridge the digital divide in Sierra Leone, the West Bank and Gaza; and my commitment to resisting the many ways the current administration is attacking the social fabric of our country, specifically fighting back against their initiatives targeting DACA recipients, giving succor to white supremacists and wrecking the ACA.” See our profile on Jessica on page 32.
David Linder and his wife, Dena, were married in downtown Chicago surrounded by family and friends. His passion for web analytics and e-commerce led him to a new role as product manager of Yield Optimization at Prodege LLC.
2009
Kevin Kim has had an eclectic mix of career opportunities since graduating from Cornell University. In 2016, Kevin transitioned into software engineering to work in the field of custom data analytics development and visualization. After living and working for four years in Washington, D.C., Kevin decided to chase the love of his life to New York City when she started law school at Columbia. They got engaged this past October in New York.
Chef Iso Pastry (chefiso.com), created by Justin Iso, is a website all about pastry art. It recently won Editor’s Choice for best baking and sweets out of 30,000 nominations in Saveur Magazine’s 2017 annual Blog Awards. Justin launched the website in 2015 to showcase the art and science of haute pâtisserie.
2011
Brianna Tran got engaged to Chris Miller in September on top of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park. The 14-mile, 4,800-foot hike took them 12 hours, but it was well worth it! They met at a rock climbing gym, have been together for more than three years, and plan to marry on Sept. 29, 2018.
2012
After completing a Fulbright teaching assistantship in Poland, Bridget Nixon is piloting a children’s choir at a new private school in Warsaw. She is very happy to be singing again, and is looking forward to coordinating the school’s Christmas production.
2013
Katherine Woodruff graduated from Pacific University in Oregon with B.S. in environmental biology, and is now attending the University of Exeter in England to receive her master’s degree in animal behavior. She is currently enjoying the English culture while learning further research skills in her field, and plans to pursue a Ph.D. following completion of the course. She is also teaching a judo class on the weekends, an activity that she has enjoyed since early childhood.
Multi-Class Meet-Ups
The first alumni basketball game in the new athletic facility took place on Nov. 25. Parents, friends and fans reunited in the stands to cheer on 35 players from the classes of 2006-17. This year’s recipient of the Alumni Basketball Championship trophy was Team Evens.
Team Odds: Coach Butch Keller, Lucas Motro ’07, Howard Lio ’11, Nirjhar Mundkur ’11, Nilesh Murali ’11, Zach Mank ’11, Gautam Krishnamurthi ’11, Nikhil Panu ’13, Kevin Cali ’13, Kevin Susai ’13, Spenser Quash ’13, Nick Nguyen ’15, Justin Yen ’15, Nathan Dalal ’15, Rohith Kuditipudi ’15, Ashin Mehta ’15, Dylan Patel ’15 and Jordan Goheen ’17.
Team Evens: Coach Alfredo Alves, Bernie Lee ’06, Charlie Fang ’08, Alan Wong ’08, Andy Fang ’10, Kevin Fu ’10, Ryan Fan ’10, Rohan Chopra ’10, Lung-Ying Yu ’10, Stephen Hughes ’12, Sean Pan ’14, Wei Wei Buchsteiner ’14, Nick Navarro ’14, John Hughes ’14, Huck Vaughan ’14, Dhanush Madabusi ’16, Raghav Jain ’16, Rohan Jiro Desikan ’16 and Evan Lohn ’16.
Glenn Reddy ’15, Adarsh Battu ’14, Haley Tran ’17 and Lucas Wang’17 video conferenced in as guest panelists in Juston Glass’ DECA class. The alumni talked about their experiences in DECA and how the networking skills they acquired here at Harker have helped them in their current lives as college students.
Nikhil Panu ’13, Sean Pan ’14, Sheridan Tobin ’15 and Haley Tran ’17 came back to Harker as guest speakers for a senior class L.I.F.E. assembly. They covered such topics as the pitfalls they encountered as they entered college, things they have learned about the college process and things they wish they had known as seniors at Harker. Read more on this story at: https://staging.news.harker.org/seniors-learn-about-college-life-from-harker-alumni-at-assembly/.
And for more college insights from alumni, see Sophomores Speak, this issue.
Surbhi Sarna ’03 was named the recipient of the 2017 Distinguished Alumni Award by Harker’s Office of Alumni Relations and was honored at Homecoming halftime Sept. 23 on Davis Field.
The Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes a prominent alumna/alumnus who exemplifies the very best of Harker, whose contributions have led to extraordinary advances that benefit the greater good, who gives back to his or her community and to Harker, and who inspires others by his or her professional leadership and commitment.
Sarna has dedicated her career to using STEM research to improve health care for women. Her personal medical challenges in her early teen years left her determined to create better conditions in the field of female health.
She studied molecular and cell biology at the University of California, Berkeley, and worked as a clinical scientist at the Stanford University School of Medicine. After graduating from Berkeley in 2007, she worked as an engineer for medical-device companies Abbott Vascular and BioCardia. In 2009, only six years out of Harker, she founded venture-backed nVision Medical, a company dedicated to developing technology to help gynecologists more quickly detect ovarian cancer. Following a successful clinical trial, the company received FDA approval for its device in November 2015.
Sarna has been a keynote speaker at Harker’s annual Research Symposium and has been featured in numerous publications including Forbes magazine’s prestigious “30 Under 30” list of young movers and shakers in the fields of science and health care. Congratulations, Surbhi Sarna, and thank you!
Sanjana Baldwa ’12 is working with a fascinating startup, Go Jane Go, which is developing an app to connect female road warriors in real-time. The company’s motto is “Business women embracing the experience of #TravelingWhileFemale.” Via in-app messaging, women can “connect with each other for activities to make solo business travel a lot more safe, fun and easy,” according to the company’s website, http://www.gojanego.co. Baldwa, who graduated from Carnegie Mellon University this year, where she studied psychology, human-computer interaction and communication design, will be concentrating on her forte, user experience. The website already has garnered some great blog posts by traveling women, and we wish Baldwa the very best as Go Jane Go moves forward!