[Updated] A film crew from UNICEF was on campus Oct. 26 to film Harker’s various green installations, including Smart Meters at the lower school, and to interview Shreya Indukuri and Daniela Lapidous, both Gr. 10, about the grant they received (see below). The film will be used as the U.S. portion of a documentary by UNICEF on youth activism in global climate change.
The students had attended the Governors’ Global Climate Summit co-hosted by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sept. 30-Oct. 2 in Los Angeles, as two of 25 climate youth leaders.
Earlier this year, the girls were awarded an environmental grant of $5,500 to improve Harker’s energy efficiency, implement an organic garden and install window-insulating film at the upper school campus. Indukuri’s father, Raju, is a co-founder, with Alexis Ringwald, of Valence Energy, which makes efficiency measuring equipment. Ringwald has been advising and mentoring the girls throughout their project. Harker has had smart meters, devices for monitoring energy use, installed at the lower school campus, and plans to use the grant money to install smart meters at the upper school, along with several other energy saving measures.
At the conference, Lapidous and Indukuri, traveling with Ringwald and Butch Keller, upper school head, met politicians and activists. They were joined by upper school math teacher Mary Mortlock and Winged Post reporter Shannon O’Reilly, Gr. 11,on Friday. The governors’ conference precedes a global climate conference in Copenhagen, which includes the Children’s Climate Forum (CCF), a UNICEF-sponsored event. Harker’s Olivia Zhu, Gr.11, is one of only four students in the U.S. selected to attend the CCF in Copenhagen.
Keynote speeches in L.A. were delivered by Tony Blair, Thomas Friedman and Dr. Rajendra K. Pachauri, chair of the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Indukuri and Lapidous’ project was on display at the conference in the Valence booth, and the young women presented to a variety of visitors, including Governor Schwarzenegger.
The students answered some questions on their experiences at the conference:
1. What was the highlight of the trip for you? Indukuri: The highlight of my trip was watching Tom Friedman speak about climate change. He is an amazing, motivational and engaging speaker who inspired the entire audience to take a stand and go green by persuading climate leaders in the government to pass new laws. I’ll always remember his hilarious yet precise advice – “Get out of Facebook and get in someone’s face!”
Lapidous: The highlight of the trip for me was the closing luncheon where Tony Blair, Dr. Rajendra Pachauri and Schwarzenegger had an on-stage conversation with Ann Thompson. All of them are great leaders on climate change who have the ability to put forth the information and a call to action in a way that can relate to and inspire the average person.
2. What did you learn that will help you with your project at Harker? Indukuri: I learned that with a little personal effort from every member of the student body and faculty, there can be huge reduction in carbon emissions at Harker.
Lapidous: A lot of persistence will be needed to make any change. The most useful thing was meeting people with experience in a lot of areas of environmentalism – business people, scientists, school leaders, politicians – and getting their contact information and support. We’ve been e-mailing some of them and joining a couple of online networks that will help us stay connected to the global green movement and get resources for our Harker project.
3. Who did you meet that made an impression on you? Indukuri: The youth panel and Tom Friedman definitely made a huge impression on me. One of the panelists mentioned that the majority of people genuinely care about the environment, but since we Californians don’t deal with climate change as directly as island nations do, the issue doesn’t hit us as hard. If there was a way to show everyone that every single person around them will be affected severely by climate change if no change is taken, that will hopefully stimulate a huge interest and commitment to fighting climate change.
Lapidous: Meeting Tom Friedman for a second at a party was a complete awe-of-celebrity moment, but then hearing him speak at an event was incredible. He talked about how the price of oil is inverse to the pace of freedom, and how fighting climate change is not something that will compete with the economy – clean tech will become the driving force of the economy. I was personally impressed with Schwarzenegger’s speaking style, and we met him for about five minutes when we were presenting the Harker energy plan at the Valence Energy booth. My favorite quote of his was that we need to make green hip, like what “Saturday Night Fever” did for disco. Beth Stevens, from Disney, was really nice, too. We explained the smart energy plan to her, and she said smart energy would be an interesting idea for their Disney environmental schools projects. We also met Pam Tuttle from California Student Sustainability Coalition and some of her friends from the same organization and talked with them at an evening reception for a while about everything from GM food to green colleges. They said they’d like to reach out to high schools more. That conversation just made an impression on us because we thought the CSSC was really cool.
Did the conference fire you up even more on the topic? Indukuri: I feel a million times more committed to joining the green movement because, with this tremendous support and passion brewing among global leaders, there are endless possibilities to fighting climate change. I also feel more committed to informing people that climate change exists and it has disastrous consequences; a lot of the climate leaders stated that a huge fraction of the world’s population is unaware of climate change issues.
Lapidous: Definitely! Right after I got back from the conference, I really started thinking about the impacts of all my actions from turning off lights to how long I showered – more obsessively than usual! And we were extremely inspired. All of these brilliant people converging in one place to discuss this one topic just shows how important it is; if we don’t anything about it now, we’ll really regret it in the future and history will label us as the generation who sat back and watched the world go up in flames. People will either be part of the problem or part of the solution, and it will take an extremely grueling period of effort by a lot of people to come up with even a fraction of a solution, but every contribution counts. We know the work is hard, and it does seem rather intimidating, but we’re just taking it one baby step at a time.
Do you have any other comments on the overall experience? Indukuri: One of my favorite parts of the conference was the youth leaders’ optimistic approach to combating climate change. Since young generations helped create massive movements such as civil rights, women’s rights, etc., climate change is this generation’s challenge and we should be excited and committed to solving it!
Lapidous: Sure, we’re inspired, but we really need the help of other people, too! I understand that in the U.S., especially, it’s hard to recognize the effects of climate change, and look so far into the future when we have problems in the present. However, it needs to be seen that climate change is THE number one issue facing the planet. We’re going to constitute the future – I think we need to all come together to make sure that our future thoughts are, “We’re glad we didn’t miss the chance to take action.”
The 2009 Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology results are in and Alex Han, Gr. 12, has been named a regional finalist; Harker also has three semifinalists, Namrata Anand, Andrea Lincoln and Andrew Zhou, all Gr. 12.
Han’s project is titled “The Natural Compound Celastrol, a Potent Inducer of the Stress Response Protein Heme Oxygenase-1, Exhibits Cytoprotective and Wound Healing Properties in Cell Culture”; Lincoln’s is “Fault-Tolerance of Node Failures for a Stochastic Localization Algorithm in Wireless Sensor Networks”; Zhou’s project is “Quantifying the Mix of Stellar Populations in Studies of the Andromeda Galaxy”; and Anand’s is “A Spectral Analysis of the Chemical Enrichment History of Red Giants in the Andromeda Galaxy Field (M31) Versus its Dwarf Spheroidal (dSph) Satellites.”
“Alex being selected as a regional finalist is a BIG deal,” said Kate Schafer, upper school science teacher and contest advisor. “He was one of five finalists in the seven-state Western region and one of the five will be chosen to compete in the national competition. Alex has a lot of work ahead to prepare for the next level, held at Cal Tech. He must give an oral presentation lasting 12 minutes, answer questions by a panel of judges in a private room and present a poster of his work to the judges as well.
“We had an impressive group of projects this year, and I am so proud of all the hours and hard work that they put into their papers,” said Schafer.
The Global Empowerment and Outreach student club kicked off its fall GEO week on Oct. 16 with a visit to the upper school by charity: water’s Lane Wood, who spoke to a special Friday assembly about the crisis being faced by more than one billion people worldwide who do not have access to clean drinking water. The charity: water organization, whose founder, Scott Harrison, visited Harker’s middle and upper school campuses last year, raises money to build wells where fresh water is sorely needed. So far the organization has completed more than 1,200 water projects that have helped approximately 650,000 people worldwide.
Clean drinking water is the theme of the fall GEO week, and includes various events and fundraisers, including a relay race and a program in which students sponsor teachers and staff who have pledged to give up their favorite drinks for the week.
The life and contributions of John Near, 31-year veteran teacher and coach, were celebrated with tears and laughter by a crowd of nearly 500 on Oct. 10 in Nichols Hall on the Saratoga campus.
The moving tribute brought Near’s family, friends, fellow teachers, alumni, students and parents together to share anecdotes, reminisce, and, ultimately, celebrate a life well-lived and the impact Near had on all those around him.
From a stage featuring Near’s classroom and coaching memorabilia, including his roll top desk and sports jerseys, Head of School Chris Nikoloff spoke movingly of Near’s contribution to Harker’s development over the past three decades; Diana Nichols, former head of school and current Harker trustee and consultant, told how Near grew with the school, ever improving his teaching methods to challenge his students, and how he contributed immeasurably to the development of the school – and thus thousands of students – in many areas, from the classroom to faculty meetings to basketball teams.
Three alumnae, Jessica Liu ’04; VyVy Trinh ’07 and Casey Near ’06, Near’s daughter and a senior at Scripps College, read excerpts from Near’s legendary baccalaureate speeches, relaying philosophies he shared with graduates. Steve Tedesco, a lifelong friend, took the stage to talk about Near’s life prior to and outside of Harker, and was joined by two other friends he’d had since elementary school, Craig Pettengill and Mark DiFiore.
The audience was treated to a photo slide show set to music (“Secret of Life” and “Shower the People,” both by James Taylor and favorites of Near’s), spanning his life and showing the very human side of this most respected educator and mentor. The slide show illustrated his many roles: teacher; coach; husband of Pam Dickinson, director of Harker’s Office of Communication; father; son; brother; and friend.
Jim Near, John’s father, wrapped up the formal program. Over the years, John had repeatedly said how his father was the only man he respected more than former head of school Howard Nichols, who passed away in December 2008. His dad’s strength of character, passed from father to son, was apparent as he talked about his son growing up, in maturity, ill and in his final weeks, and how his son had come to accept the inevitable with the same strength he demonstrated throughout his life. His parents have established the John Near Excellence in History Education Endowment Fund in his honor.
Microphones were opened up and teachers, alumni, students, parents and friends shared their special John Near memories and moments. Many involved the famous “Mr. Near look,” and each told how behind the look they found a caring, passionate teacher. An alumnus, inspired to become a history teacher, told how he also adopted Near’s approach to a wayward student, “We can do this the hard way, or my way”; a phrase as effective in his own classroom as it had been when he was on the receiving end in Near’s classroom many years ago.
Refreshments were served in front of Nichols Hall afterward, and guests mingled and reconnected, just as Near had requested. His favorite snack foods were served, such as popcorn, apples and brownies, which he was known to bake each week for his advisory group.
The printed program included some of Near’s favorite quotes, and Ralph Waldo Emerson’s especially captured the day:
“What is success? To laugh often and much; To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; To appreciate beauty; To find the best in others; To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden path, or a redeemed social condition; To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. That is to have succeeded.”
From the dozens of anecdotes and memories – whether they were courtside, in the classroom or with friends and families – it was clear that Near’s life and impact is a legacy that will continue to inspire his thousands of students, scores of peers and friends, and his own loving family.
At Near’s request, donations can be made to any one of the following: The John Near Excellence in History Education Endowment Fund (Harker School Advancement Office; 3800 Blackford Ave; SJ 95117; checks to The Harker School, memo line “John Near Endowment Fund”); Hospice of the Valley; CaringBridge; Silicon Valley Wellness Center. To order a DVD of the memorial, email communication@harker.org.
The 59th annual Harker Family and Alumni Picnic, themed Picnic in the Pines this year, drew a sunny-day crowd thick with children. For this great big family festival, the Blackford campus became an alluring array of games, specially-themed activities and entertainment for all.
Brian and Eileen Richardson (Ian, Gr. 8; Shannon, Gr. 6) were the big winners in this year’s raffle, taking home the top prize of $10,000. Other prizes included a getaway to Las Vegas, Sony digital camera and a Trek 21-speed mountain bike. Every visitor had her or his quota of food, prizes and fun, from tykes who couldn’t get enough train rides to students trying booth games to those bargain hunting at the silent auction.
Food followed the theme, with the Weenie Roast Café, Switchback Sweets and the Critter Canteen. Games ranged from Bullwinkle Baggo to Big Bug Bowling to the Games Guru. There were plenty of activities besides games, too, including Camp Crafts and Forest Fortunetellers.
Teacher packages were spectacular and popular, ranging from riding the Steam Train at Roaring Camp with Gr. 1 teachers Mary Holaday and Rita Stone, to building designing set pieces or lighting arrays for the stage with Danny Dunn, lower school technical director in the performing arts department. Along with outings were sleep-overs, movie nights and sundry other eye-catching activities that bring classmates together after hours.
Entertainment included the “Wild Wilderness” Jazz Band, California Critters, a live animal show, “Three Pigs” by Puppet Art Theater, and of course the main show at 11 a.m. which featured Chris Nikoloff, Greg Lawson, Jennifer Gargano and students from Gr. 4-12 performing arts ensembles.
By the time the sun swung over the tree tops, Picnic in the Pines had brought the Harker community together once more to celebrate the end of summer, the return to school and the joy of working together to make the picnic a success!
On Oct. 2 lower school students and faculty attended a special assembly on bullying. Soren Bennick Productions presented their internationally-recognized presentation in two separate assemblies, one for K-Gr. 3 and the other for Gr. 4-5. In each assembly, the two presenters took on the role of actors who demonstrated different types of bullying. They then discussed how to deal with each situation. For K-Gr. 3, physical and exclusionary bullying were discussed; for the older grades, cyber-bullying was also addressed. For both groups, a final component was that of the role of the bystander, who can perform one of three roles – cheering on the bully, watching or ignoring the situation. Student volunteers took part in this section, which made the assembly not only interactive but enjoyable for the students. In concluding the assembly, a final student volunteer took the stage, donned a superhero mask, cape and gloves, and, looking in a “power of one” box, which contained a mirror, the student revealed that the power to stop bullying lies within each student, who can report bullying so it will be stopped.
All faculty and students then took the Power of One Anti-Bullying Oath, pledging to use their power to prevent bullying at Harker. Each student and teacher on campus will be signing a poster containing the oath over the next week, and the posters will be displayed on campus. Although Harker has always focused on being a safe place for students, this assembly reminded all students of the importance of keeping the campus that way, further emphasizing that bullying is not just limited to physical actions.
October 9 marked the inaugural Howard Nichols Cookie Day, held to remember the late former head of school and visionary’s birthday (Oct. 10) and celebrate his inspirational values that continue to drive the spirit and growth of The Harker School.
All three campuses celebrated by having trays of cookies located in various places around school. Nichols, who was known for his sweet tooth, regularly kept a full jar of cookies and other confections in his office that were a hit with visitors.
“Howard brought out the best in all of us through his devotion to excellence, kindness, integrity and a touch of sweetness that flowed from the always-popular cookie jar he kept in his office,” said Chris Nikoloff, head of school.
John Richard Near
May 28, 1953 – September 26, 2009
John Near, longtime and beloved history teacher at The Harker School, passed away at home – with his wife and daughter at his side – after a four-year journey with colorectal cancer. John’s career at Harker spanned 31 years as a middle and upper school teacher, coach and department chair, and in spite of the cancer, he taught full-time until May. Over the years John inspired countless students to love history, and more recently, he and his family touched the entire community with their life-embracing dignity and courage in the face of great adversity.
Minnesota-born, John moved to the Bay Area when he was three, and graduated from Del Mar High School and the University of California at Santa Barbara. John began teaching world history and geography at Harker in 1978. For many years, he taught eighth grade U.S. history; in 2000, he moved to the newly launched upper school where he served as department chair and taught AP U.S. History and AP U.S. Government and Politics.
In the classroom, John represented a unique blend of gravitas and heart that brought out the best in his students. He challenged his students with his legendary steely gaze, but they always knew they had his unerring support. The students returned his affection by inviting him, on multiple occasions, to deliver the Baccalaureate address, an end-of-year farewell to seniors.
John also loved sports, and was a natural athlete. He played basketball and golf in high school – and continued both for many years – and coached several sports at Harker, including football, basketball, soccer, softball and, in more recent years, girls varsity basketball. Being in a John Near classroom or on a team was about infinitely more than just learning history or basketball. It was about life lessons, integrity, truth to oneself, goodness and honesty.
John’s piercing insight always advocated for policies that promoted teaching excellence, institutional kindness, and most importantly, care for students. After a lengthy faculty dialogue, John would sometimes say, “That’s true, but what about…” and typically astonished the room with uncommon common sense on how we ought to think about teaching and children. This year, John was awarded Harker’s Phyllis Carley Lifetime Service Award for his tremendous career at the school. The history department also named the annual history award given to an outstanding senior in the subject the John Near Excellence in History Award. Finally, the Near family has endowed the John Near Excellence in History Education Endowment Fund to promote professional development and pedagogical excellence in history education.
Family members missing John immensely are his wife (and forever girlfriend) Pam Dickinson; daughter Casey Near; parents Jim and Pat Near of Hawaii; brother Bob Near of Aptos; brother Randy Near and wife, Sherrie, of Gilroy; sister Nancy Lawton and her husband, Tyler, of La Jolla; brother Rob Vanderhoof and his wife, Helen, of Grass Valley; two brothers-in-law and their partners, Bruce and Amy Dickinson, and Jimmy Dickinson and Jan Mallory; and many Near and Dickinson nieces and nephews. John was predeceased by his mother Marguerite (Berg) Near. His closest friends – Steve Tedesco, Craig Pettingill and Mark Difiore – were those he met in the first grade at Monroe Elementary School, and they and the rest of “The Group,” and all of John’s wonderful Harker colleagues, have been his other family.
A memorial will be held at Nichols Hall on the Saratoga campus of The Harker School on Sat., Oct. 10 at 1:30 p.m. The Harker School is at 500 Saratoga Ave., San Jose, 95129. Please RSVP to johnnearmemorial@gmail.com so appropriate parking, seats and refreshments may be prepared. In keeping with John’s wishes and style, this event is casual. Please wear your sports jerseys, Harker T-shirts, etc.
At John’s request, in lieu of flowers donations may be made to any one of the following:
The John Near Excellence in History Education Endowment Fund (Harker School Advancement Office; 3800 Blackford Ave; SJ 95117; checks to The Harker School, memo line “John Near Endowment Fund”)
Those interested in learning more about John’s journey, reading posts or leaving a message for the family are welcome to do so at www.caringbridge.org/visit/johnnear/.
An interest in Harker’s Latin program brought alumnus Thomas Garvey MS ’95 back to the Saratoga campus on Sept. 21. Currently working on his Ph.D. in ancient Greek and Latin at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Garvey was invited by US Latin teacher John Hawley to be a guest teacher.
“When I was here, there was neither a high school nor a Latin program; I was interested just in seeing what the program was like,” Garvey said. “I e-mailed John Hawley, and he very graciously said I could come and observe, and actually asked me if I could guest teach a class.”
In the class, Garvey had students read and translate poems and discussed grammar, culture and etymology.
Garvey said he expects to be finished with his Ph.D. in May of 2010 and is currently seeking teaching positions and professorships at various universities.
Since graduating the eighth grade, he has been following the growth of Harker over the years by reading the school’s newsletters.
“I sort of found it hard to believe that it could get any more fantastic than when I was here,” Garvey said, “But it seems to have done it!”
Harker lost a member of its community last Saturday when history teacher, basketball coach and mentor extraordinaire John Near succumbed to a four-year battle with cancer. Below are the details for the planned memorial service. A full biography of John’s life will follow here soon.
A memorial will be held at Nichols Hall on the Saratoga campus of The Harker School on October 10 at 1:30 p.m. The Harker School is at 500 Saratoga Ave., San Jose, 95129. Please RSVP to johnnearmemorial@gmail.com so appropriate parking, seats and refreshments may be prepared. In keeping with John’s wishes and style, this event is casual. Please wear your sports jerseys, Harker T-shirts, etc.!
At John’s request, in lieu of flowers donations may be made to any one of these:
The John Near Excellence in History Education Endowment Fund
Harker School Advancement Office; 3800 Blackford Ave; SJ 95117; checks to The Harker School, memo line “John Near Endowment Fund.”