Frustrated with her inability to make the scheduled used book sales, Anjali Menon ’10, with the help of her brother, Ramakrishnan, grade 10, established an online marketplace called Bookshelf for students to buy and sell used books from their fellow classmates.
While at Harker, “I was unable to attend used book sales because of time/date conflicts,” Anjali Menon said, “but we feel like such conflicts should not restrict us from trading our books within the Harker community, since our classmates are most likely to buy our books and have the books we need in the first place.”
Bookshelf relies solely on students’ active participation. All names are anonymous and buyer-seller contacts are done through Bookshelf-generated e-mails. Still in its early stages, Bookshelf is only available to Harker students, but the Menons aim eventually to open the website to all students. “If Bookshelf successfully gains more traction within the Harker community,” Anjali Menon said, “then we might consider including more students, but one school at a time.”
After weeks of exchanging cards and learning more about each other, third graders finally met their big buddies at the official Eagle Buddies kickoff Oct. 6.
Balloons lined the walkways and, as sophomores filed through the gym to the field, third graders cheered and clapped, warmly welcoming the older students with grins and hugs. The buddies spent the morning playing games organized by the BEST staff – wringing out sponges, racing with their legs tied together and running around campus in a scavenger hunt.
“It was really cute to see a tall sophomore with a small third grader and their legs tied together, hobbling down the field,” said Carol Zink, upper school history teacher and one of the Eagle Buddies program coordinators. She described one sophomore picking up his Little Buddy to make the turnaround in the three-legged race and stressed how well everyone communicated with each other during the games.
“The Eagle Buddy meeting was fantastic!” said Jeffrey Draper, sophomore class dean. “It was so great to see the young third graders interacting with their old, tenth grade buddies, playing games together, talking about their interests, and seeing the sophomores take such great care in the way they worked with their Little Buddies.”
Sarah Leonard, K-3 division head, was impressed by how quickly the new relationships unfolded. “For most, it was instantaneous,” she said. “The buddies clicked and new friendships were born.”
Inspired by Butch Keller, upper school head, the Eagle Buddies program aims to increase cross-campus connections and integrate the Harker community in a new tradition. Tenth graders and third graders were paired up for a three-year-long friendship program that will last until their respective graduations in 2014.
“We are a K-12 school and watching the interaction that day at Bucknall, all those things came true,” Keller recapped.
The buddies’ next opportunity to hang out will be during the Nov. 22 homecoming football game. Pizza will be served at the tailgate and buddies can watch the contest together. The game will also be a chance for buddy parents to meet each other. In January, buddies will participate in the lower school’s Pajama Day fundraiser and, come spring, Little Buddies will be taking a trip to the upper school campus for the annual spring spirit rally. In between, sophomores will be inviting their Little Buddies to performances and sports games and continuing to write letters.
“It is my hope that this is the beginning of a long, time-honored tradition,” Leonard said. “The benefits to young and old alike in regards to encouraging communication, promoting responsibility and building and managing relationships cannot be underestimated.”
Dancers, singers and musicians will again help celebrate “Light Up the Night” at Santana Row, a long-time Harker Fashion Show sponsor. Performers will gather Tues., Nov. 16 from 6-6:30 p.m. for the annual tree lighting, which this year is being directed by our own Laura Lang-Ree, director of performing arts. Harker groups Dance Fusion, US Jazz Band and Downbeat will all be performing prior to the tree lighting on the green outside Maggiano’s Little Italy restaurant. The entire event runs from 3-9 p.m. More details are available at http://www.santanarow.com/events/calendar/2010/11/ (yes, the photo on their site is Harker’s Dance Fusion at last year’s performance!).
Rohan Chandra, grade 10, is one of 10 first place national winners of the Scholastic BE BIG in Your Community contest, in which people submitted ideas to help improve their communities. Chandra will receive a $2,500 grant to help his idea come to life. His plan is to make and distribute “Earthquake Kits” to the senior citizens in his area, which runs an especially high risk of experiencing a major earthquake.
These kits would contain essentials such as water, a flashlight, first-aid supplies, medicine and non-perishable foods. Because Chandra’s community is very ethnically diverse, the kits would also come with instructions in various languages such as Spanish, Mandarin, Hindi, Urdu and Tagalog, so that more people will be able to clearly and quickly understand important information in the event of an earthquake-related emergency. The contest organizers provide the structure for winners to complete their proposals. Chandra’s was one of nearly 1,000 entries; more than 25,000 community members of all ages submitted for the contest: one top-10 winner was 55.
On Sept. 23, 30 members of the Harker community joined the Gauba and Reddy families at the Silver Creek Valley Country Club for a golfing tournament and wine tasting. All proceeds from the event will go to Harker’s general endowment fund, which assists the programs not covered by tuition and fees, including athletics, clubs, performing arts, visual arts, the library and technology.
For an afternoon, faculty, parents and students participated in friendly competition. Denise Broderson, Barbara Young, Dorothy Scarpace and Ingrid Wu won first place in the tournament; Mike Armstrong won Closest to Pin; and Susan McNealy won the Longest Drive. In a putting face-off, Maverick McNealy, grade 10, defeated Christopher Nikoloff, head of school, and won a new wedge.
Afterward, adults took part in a wine tasting. “Watching the sun set was a very nice way to finish off the event,” said Joe Rosenthal, executive director of advancement.
The Harker School Orchestra will be invited to play at the 2012 New Year’s Day parade celebration in London, England, and Lady Catherine Longworth, former lord mayor of the city of Westminister, will be on campus Fri., Oct. 29, to present the invitation.
London’s New Year’s Day parade will be the first official event celebrating both Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee and the city’s Olympic year. The parade’s Festival Concerts, in which Harker’s orchestra will play, are also the first events of London’s 2012 Cultural Olympiad.
The parade route wends through Piccadilly, Regent Street and Whitehall, through the center of Westminster, ending in the shadows of the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. More than half a million spectators are expected to pack London’s streets to watch the spectacular procession.
The invitation will be presented by a delegation of British officials at an assembly including, along with the former lord mayor, Robert Bone, executive director of the London New Year’s Day parade, and Lady Catherine’s husband, John Longworth. The assembly will be entertained by a section of the orchestra and, afterward, the delegation will enjoy a student-led tour of the campus.
Harker is among a number of schools selected from around the U.S. to be invited to perform in the parade and associated venues around London.
[Football Update]
The Eagles triumphed, again, Friday evening, over Capuchino this time, 27-6, making them 6-0! Quarterback Rishi Bhatia, grade 12, had a hand in all 27 points, accumulating 228 yards passing and 117 yards rushing. Senior Gautam Krishnamurthi pulled in 150 yards receiving, while Eagles sophomore Michael Chen had 10 tackles. Go Eagles!
Football
Harker varsity football cleaned up California School for the Deaf 23-0 Oct. 1 and set a school record by going 5-0 to start the season. Linebacker Greg Cox, grade 12, intercepted a tipped pass in the first half, and classmate cornerback Alex Kablanian returned another interception 26 yards for a touchdown. Safety Gautam Krishnamurthi, grade 12, had three interceptions and took one back 55 yards for a score. The Tri-City Voice published more details.
The week before, in pre-league play, the team topped Lynbrook 19-6 with quarterback Rishi Bhatia, grade 12, running for one touchdown and throwing for another to Cox. Krishnamurthi sealed the victory with a 53-yard interception return for a touchdown in the final minute of the game. The boys have their last home game before homecoming this Friday, Oct. 8, against Capuchino High. Senior Appreciation Night for football will take place prior to the contest.
Volleyball
Varsity volleyball continued their impressive season with victories over San Lorenzo Valley and Silver Creek, along with strong play at the Cupertino Classic Tournament. At the tournament the girls won their pool and advanced to the Gold Division. They posted victories over Mills, Sobrato and Fremont, with their only losses coming to eventual tournament champion Burlingame and Valley Christian. Their record is now 13-2.
Cross Country
The team competed last weekend at the Stanford Invitational, one of the largest cross country races in the country. The boys placed 30th and the girls 23rd. Tyler Yeats, grade 10, ran the team’s fastest time at 18:36 and Claudia Tischler, grade 9, was the fastest girl, finishing at 20:52. In their first league meet last week at San Bruno Mountain Park, the girls team placed third, with Ragini Bhattacharya, grade 10, running 18:59 and placing fourth in the league. The boys team took fourth at the meet and Yeats ran 16:59. Their next event is this Saturday at the Crystal Springs Invitational.
Golf
The girls have had five matches in the last two weeks, starting and finishing with losses, but with three straight wins in between. Starting with a tough loss to Castilleja School and a big win over Notre Dame San Jose 247-271, they were led by Katie Liang, grade 12, who shot an impressive 46. The squad went on to beat Menlo and Mercy before dropping to Sacred Heart Prep. The next games are rematches against Castilleja on Wed., Oct. 6, and Notre Dame next Tuesday. The girls have important matches this week against Menlo and Mercy Burlingame.
Water Polo
Girls water polo last week earned their first victory of the season, defeating Cupertino in a league match 12-5. Keri Clifford, grade 10 and Cindy Shwe, grade 12, looked impressive with four goals apiece. The team was blanked 0-3 in some close games last weekend at the Carmel Invitational, though Clifford had seven goals and Sierra Lincoln had 22 goal saves. The girls JV team traveled to Monte Vista for a tournament last weekend and went 3-0. They won big games over Valley Christian, Castilleja and Homestead.
The boys water polo team improved to 7-5 after two huge victories over Cupertino and Santa Clara and a loss to Lynbrook. In the Cupertino match, Chris Ng, grade 12, led the team with four goals. Against Santa Clara, Ng again led the team with six goals, supported by Rex Chen, grade 12, with three and Gilad Nilo, grade 10, with one.
Tennis
The girls tennis team has had a busy schedule, winning four and losing two in the last 10 days. The victories came over Presentation and Priory, both 7-0, and Pinewood and Sacred Heart Prep, both 5-2, with tough losses to Archbishop Mitty High School 2-5 and Monta Vista High School 0-7. Now 6-2 as of this week, the team is at home against Castilleja and visiting at Notre Dame. Go Eagles!
The 60th Harker Family and Alumni Picnic, titled Peace Love Picnic, danced through a warm afternoon, the sound of Harker choirs and bands blending with the chatter of young and old enjoying a perfect end-of-summer day on the ’60s-themed Blackford campus.
The picnic featured a special “Birthday Boulevard” to celebrate the anniversary of former school president Howard Nichols’ birthday and, for the first time, the lower school choir and combination lower and middle school jazz band took to the stage to entertain picnickers. All three campuses’ performing arts groups, along with a magician and storyteller, kept the stage hopping the whole day.
Mary Hyver (Ben, grade 5; Emma, grade 3), a new family to Harker, was strolling the blacktop with husband, Scott, and two smaller children enjoying the picnic for the first time. “There is plenty to do for the kids,” she said. The family was anticipating watching Ben perform with the lower and middle school jazz band later.
Middle schoolers were there to see and be seen. Selin Ekici, grade 7, has been attending Harker since grade 3 and attends picnics regularly. “It has just always been really fun,” she said, “I’m mainly here to see everybody.”
Ekici was accompanied by classmate Chloe van den Dries, who said she was there to “play the games and eat food. I just like to come and walk, to watch the crowds.”
Plenty of upper school students were evident. Sean Knudsen, grade 9, at the picnic to perform with Bel Canto, and wearing his football jersey (varsity won Friday night, bringing their record to 6-0) was wandering the picnic area with a friend, just checking things out.
“I’m here to support my cousin,” said Apurva Gorti, grade 9. “He’s singing.” Otherwise, she said, “I’m just here to be with my friends, just hang. My brother is over there, and he’s in kindergarten, so he came for all the games and rides and he’s having a really good time.”
As an alum and now a mom, Preete Bhanot ’88, attending with her two children (Keshav, grade 2; Priya grade 4) has a few picnics behind her. “I love it!” she said of the picnic. “I have been bringing (the children) since Priya was in kindergarten – we come every year. This year, with her children on stage in the choir, “we ate and we watched their performance, which was really cool – this was the first time they have performed in it.”
Priya said she loves winning prizes, but her favorite activity is dunking the teachers at the dunk tank. Keshav said he was there for the rock climbing.
The stage was never empty for long and at 3:30 the ’60s Dance Party began to wind up the day. The grand prize drawing for $10,000 was at 4 p.m.; watch for the full story on winners in the next few days!
Almost 50 Harker community members joined more than 73,000 volunteers in late September on the California coast for the 26th annual California Coastal Cleanup Day (CCCD), hosted by the California Coastal Commission.
Inspired by this year’s lower school theme of compassion, parent volunteer Kelly Lewis Brezoczky (Emma, grade 5; Charlotte, grade 3) suggested that Harker participate in the coastal clean-up. “This fits in with compassion for others,” said Joe Connolly, lower school dean of students, noting the importance of instilling a sense of service among the students.
CCCD is part of a larger grassroots movement, the International Coastal Cleanup, and was only one of 100 countries that dedicated Sept. 25 to removing millions of pounds of trash from beaches and waterways.
Brezoczky coordinated Harker’s participation through the Marine Science Institute in Redwood City, and service and spirit club advisor Katie Molin invited grade 4 and 5 families to help pick up debris littered across Pillar Point and Pilarcitos Creek in Half Moon Bay.
Families walked along the shoreline and collected aluminum cans, cigarette butts and pieces of broken glass. The Ocean Conservancy, one of the event’s many sponsors, awarded Molin’s daughter Naomi, grade 7, with a T-shirt for finding the most unusual piece of litter in the area – a large plastic net.
“The students were excited to be helping the environment by collecting candy wrappers and other paper trash, as well as by finding an old tent and two shopping carts in the creek,” Molin said. “There seems to be a lot of student interest at the lower school in helping with such projects, so I’m sure that a future event would be equally well-attended and successful.”
Brezoczky said that working at Pilarcitos Creek for the second half of the morning gave students a chance to see how trash makes its way to the ocean. “The students got so excited when they found so much trash in the creek that they wanted to go back and continue cleaning up after we finished!” she said.
As the weather reached triple digits Sept. 27, the class of 2012 set out to sea for a day of sailing and kayaking in Santa Cruz and Elkhorn Slough. The annual junior class trip offers a chance to enhance team building techniques and allows advisories to bond outside of their weekly Thursday get-togethers.
Students who went sailing at Santa Cruz learned to rig sails, time turns correctly and tried their hand at steering the boat. Noel Witcosky’s favorite moment of the day was when fellow advisee Bradley Araki made a sharp turn and the boat tipped because she forgot to loosen the mast. “At least I know how to flip a sailboat now,” Witcosky said.
For Daniela Lapidous, the afternoon race was the highlight of her trip. Spanish teacher Daniela Rozanes’ advisory enjoyed the friendly competition and their boat finished in 44 minutes. “We turned on the radio, took a lot of pictures, and of course tried to keep up with our real sailor’s, Jeff’s, instruction,” Lapidous said. “I think it was the best class trip I’ve been on.”
Other students went to Elkhorn Slough, where they split into small teams and kayaked among rush and pickleweed. “We rowed through this winding creek and we spotted sea lions, harbor seals, multiple jellyfish, pelicans, sea otters and seagulls!” Laura Yau said.
“All in all, I’d say it was a fun experience, even though it was pretty tiring,” Revanth Kosaraju said. “The fact that all of us were getting tired together and spending a day with each other outside of school was a really good bonding experience.”