Earlier this month, sixth grader Rory Hu visited the White House for a segment that will air tomorrow on Nickelodeon’s “Nick News” at 7 p.m. She attended a press briefing hosted by Jen Psaki, White House press secretary, who she also interviewed during her visit. Hu also had the chance to sit down with CBS senior White House correspondent Ed O’Keefe and received a tour of the White House.
Tags: kudos, Nick NewsKindergartner Sophia Gu was a first place winner and received a Judges’ Distinction Award in American Protégé’s spring 2022 Music Talent Competition. This distinction earned the young pianist a trip to New York City next year to perform her original composition, “A Dream with Dinosaurs,” at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall. A video of Gu performing “A Dream with Dinosaurs” is available on YouTube.
Tags: American Protege, kudosFifth grader Emy Keyhan recently received an honorable mention in the 2022 California Coastal Commission K-12 Poetry Contest in the grades 4-6 poetry category. Her poem, “The Ocean,” was also published in the online literary magazine Tab Journal, which has posted an audio recording of Keyhan’s reading of the poem.
Tags: California Coastal Commission, kudosAt the Cupertino Earth Day and Arbor Day Festival on Apr. 23, junior Gwen-Zoe Yang presented a performance of a skit she directed, titled “The Tale of Three Trees.” Yang has been involved with the festival since 2014, performing in skits and reading poetry. In addition to the skit, she also read an original poem, titled “Raindrops,” together with 50 other students from area schools, including Harker fifth graders Sanyi Yao and Olivia Zhu.
Tags: Earth Day, eweekly, kudosMindy Truong, grade 8, was recently named a second place winner in American Protégé’s spring 2022 Music Talent Competition for her piano performance of “Presto agitato” from Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 14. As one of the higher placing competitors, Truong has been invited to perform at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall during American Protégé’s 2023 season.
Young musicians from around the world submit video auditions to American Protégé each year in a variety of categories. Earlier this year, Harker students Christine and James Tao (grades 7 and 5, respectively) also were invited to perform for the 2023 season.
Tags: American Protege, eweekly, instrumental music, kudosLast month, fifth graders Rohan Rajaram and Dylan Tang, and third grader Ethan Guo participated in the California State Chess Championship, where over 400 players competed across various sections. Rajaram won the K-5 section, with Guo taking second place and Tang taking fourth. Together, their strong performance enabled Harker to win the K-5 section! Great job!
Tags: Chess, kudosIn late February, seventh grader Aaron Ma took first place in the instrumental solo junior group and the instrumental ensemble intermediate group and in the United States Open Music Competition, an annual competition highlighting young classical musicians. In addition to his two first place wins, Ma also received the Outstanding Gold Medalist award at the USOMC winners’ concert.
Tags: kudosEarlier this month at the US Squash Junior Nationals in Philadelphia, fifth grader Sarah Thiru received the Most Improved Player award in the U13 division. This award is given to the junior players in each division who exhibited outstanding growth. Congratulations!
Tags: eweekly, kudos, squashTwo Harker students recently earned high marks in the American Protégé International Piano and String Competition. Seventh grader Christine Tao, a pianist, placed second in the junior category (ages 11-14) with her performance of Chopin’s “Nocturne #8 in D Flat Major,” while her brother, fifth grader James, placed second in the young musicians category (ages 5-10) for his rendition of Mozart’s “Fantasia in D Minor.” Both have been invited to perform at the Weill Recital Hall at New York’s Carnegie Hall during American Protégé’s 2023 recital season. Videos of Christine’s and James’ performances have been made available. Congratulations to both of these young talents!
Tags: alumni-express, eweekly, express, kudosThis week, national competitive fencer Ishani Sood, grade 10, is traveling to Paris to represent the United States at the cadet-level fencing World Cup. A competitive fencer for several years, Sood channeled her love of the sport into service last year, co-founding Fun With Fencing, a nonprofit that brings instructional programs to local Boys and Girls Clubs. Best of luck in Paris!
Tags: Class of 2024, eweekly, fencing, kudos