The 28th annual Spanish Declamation Contest “Gustavo A. Bécquer” took place at Harker March 24 at the Nichols Hall auditorium. Spanish students in levels I-V as well as native speakers from 14 public and private middle and high schools were in attendance. The students needed to memorize and recite a poem by a well-known Spanish-speaking author. Contestants were judged on their poise, memorization, delivery, pronunciation and diction by current and retired Spanish teachers from other schools, in addition to guest judge Rosario Vital, the editor of the Spanish language newspaper “El Observador.” Vital was also covering the contest for the newspaper.
Harker Spanish students won as the top school overall. In Spanish I, freshmen Rahul Nalamasu and Rohan Chandra respectively took first and second. Cole Manaster, Gr. 10, took first place in Spanish II, while Roshan Daran, Gr. 9, earned third place. Sumit Minocha, Gr. 9, took second place in the Spanish III category. Sophomores Kristen Herr and Priyanka Mody won first and second place, respectively, in Spanish 4, while senior Rashmi Sharma tied for first place in Spanish V.
Of particular note, native speaker Karan Das-Grande, Gr. 9, presented a poem titled “En mis sueños,” that he wrote himself. The students were coached by Spanish teachers Isabel García, Diana Moss, Abel Olivas and Daniela Rozanes.
Masters of ceremony were Olivia Zhu, Gr. 11 and Nathaniel Edwards, Gr. 12. Entertainment at the event was provided by junior Nikhil Parthasarathy, who played flamenco guitar at the beginning of the program, and a Ballet Folklórico group from Prospect High School, who danced prior to the event on the Nichols Hall patio. While students presented their poems, a PowerPoint presentation with imagery and lines in English from each poem was displayed to help non-Spanish-speaking students understand what was being said. After the contest, Constance Richardson, foreign language department chair at the Castilleja School, wrote to say, “The organization was seamless, the atmosphere was so welcoming and the efficiency was impressive. Kudos to you!”
In November, Roslyn Li, Gr. 12, earned second place in the non-native speaking category at the 36th annual Japanese Speech Contest, held at the Japan Information Center of the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco. Li’s speech, titled “Seeing is Believing,” detailed what she learned during her summer trip to Japan with her Japan Bowl teammates and upper school Japanese teacher Masako Onakado.
Harker students received high honors in late October, placing in the top three on various academic tests and in the Open Certamen of Ludi Octobres, Junior Classical League’s fall mini-convention. These games are a preliminary to the California JCL convention that will be held in Irvine in April.
For level four and above, April Luo, Gr. 11, placed first in Latin Derivatives and third in Pentathlon; Anjali Menon, Gr. 12, first in Mottoes, Quotations and Abbreviations and second in Latin Reading Comprehension; Jessica Lin, Gr. 10, first in Roman Daily Life; Brandon Araki, Gr. 12, first in Latin Vocabulary and first in Latin Reading Comprehension; Alexander Hsu, Gr. 10, second in Latin Grammar; Prag Batra, Gr. 10, third in Mottoes, Quotations and Abbreviations, first in Myth Spelling Bee, and second in Latin Derivatives; Phillip Oung, Gr. 10, first in Mythology.
For level three, Richard Fan, received first in Roman Daily Life and first in Mythology; Suchita Nety, second in Mottoes, Quotations and Abbreviations and third in Pentathlon; Sean Fernandes, second in Roman Daily Life and third in Mythology; Anuj Sharma, first in Mottoes, Quotations and Abbreviations and third in Latin Grammar; Shannon Su, second in Latin Derivatives; Michael Cheng, third in Latin Grammar and first in Latin Vocabulary; Jenny Chen, third in Latin Reading Comprehension. All of these students are Gr. 9.
In Open Certamen, a quiz bowl game, Harker students were split into different teams with students from other schools and Araki and Menon’s team placed second. Ramya Rangan, Gr. 10 and Nety were also recognized, placing third and first respectively.
At the middle school level one, Sadhika Malladi, Gr. 6, placed third in Reading Comprehension. At the middle school advanced level, Anni Ankola, Gr. 7, placed second in Mythology; Oishi Banerjee, Gr. 8, first in Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations and second in Reading Comprehension; Aadyot Bhatnagar, Gr. 7, first in Vocabulary and first in Reading Comprehension; Kevin Duraiswamy, Gr. 8, first in Reading Comprehension and second in Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations. In Open Certamen, Banerjee’s team placed first and Bhatnagar’s placed third.
Additionally, Ankola, Vivek Sriram, Ryan Pachauri and Billy Bloomquist, all Gr. 7, placed third in the impromptu art competition.
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!”
In only the second year that Harker has sent teams for all three levels, the Japanese program swept all three first-place team prizes at the National Japan Bowl in Washington, D.C., over spring break. The top-level team and their teacher were awarded a 10-day trip to Japan this summer where their itinerary includes the honor of meeting Her Imperial Highness Princess Takamado.
The Japan Bowl is an annual team competition for high school students across the U.S. studying Japanese as their foreign language. There are three levels of competition – II, III and IV, with level IV being the most challenging – and three students per team. The competition tests not only the students’ language skills but also their knowledge of history, geography, politics, current events, U.S.- Japan relations and variety of cultural aspects such as arts, festivals, religions, pop culture, etiquette and gestures.
“Although it is a very challenging competition, we have shown ver y steady improvement ever y year,” said Masako Onakado, Japanese teacher. “Last year, we earned second place in both level II and level III and four th place in level IV, which was our best record until then. Earning the first place in all levels in this 17-year-old competition this year was truly remarkable.”
Chris Nikoloff, head of school, also noted, “This is an amazing accomplishment. Congratulations to the students and thanks to Masako for all of her ef for ts on their behalf.”
Student winners were: Level IV Sarah Wang, Gr. 11, team captain; Roslyn Li, Gr.11 and Kevin Wang, Gr. 12. Level III Kelly Chen, Gr. 11, team captain; Jerry Sun, Gr. 10 and Katie Liang, Gr. 10. Level II Nirupama Gadagottu, Gr. 12, team captain; Tiffany Jang, Gr. 9 and Victoria Liang, Gr. 10.
A special performance by Japan’s Okayama Gakugeikan High School Symphonic Band had the morning crowd cheering at a special US assembly on March 16.
Having recently placed in the top 10 of a national high school band competition in Japan, the 60-member orchestra came to Harker as part of an American tour that included San Francisco, Santa Clara University and New York City. Their performance at the assembly included works from a variety of genres, from classical mainstays such as Pachelbel to more contemporary fare, such as their rendition of “I Need to Be in Love” by the Carpenters.
The band really got amped, however, during their cover of “The Sun Will Rise Again” by the Japanese pop group Aladdin. Musicians wrapped boa scarves around their necks and performed a choreographed dance routine during the number, complete with miniature Japanese and American flags. The crowd interaction hardly stopped there. On one song, the entire band (save for the rhythm section) ventured out into the audience, where they performed the duration of the piece.
In all, a welcome treat and an inspiring display of musicianship from this talented young troupe!
Over fifty Harker MS students received awards at the National Latin Exam this year, including 11 gold medals and two per fect papers. The exam was taken by more than 135,000 students from the U.S. and 11 foreign countries.
Introduction to Latin (Gr. 6 except where noted): Outstanding Achievement: Ben Montrym (per fect paper), Aadyot Bhatnagar, Tiara Bhatacharya, Sahana Rangarajan, Madhuri Nori, Simran Singh, Angela Gu, Christopher Sund, Gr. 8, Jackelyn Shen, Lydia Werthen, Gr. 8, Maya Nandakumar; Achievement: Divyahans Gupta, Eric Holt, Reena Sandhu, Neel Bedekar, Rasika Raghavan, Annirudh Ankola, Sahithya Prakash, Gr. 7
Latin I (Gr. 7 except where noted): Gold/Summa Cum Laude – Oishi Banerjee, Kevin Duraiswamy, Helena Huang, Pranav Batra; Silver/Maxima Cum Laude – Saachi Jain, Brian Tuan, Richard Min, Sarika Bajaj, Arthur Shau, Connie Li, Anika Ayyar; Magna Cum Laude – Andrew Wang, Shenel Ekici, Urvi Gupta, Nikhil Dilip; Cum Laude – Tiffany Chu, Allison Chang, Piyush Prasad Gr. 8, Charles Manchester, Simon Orr, Gr. 8
Latin 2 (Gr. 8): Gold/Summa Cum Laude – Pranav Sharma (per fect paper for the third year), Ashvin Swaminathan, Anuj Sharma, Jenny Chen, Niharika Bedekar, Shannon Su, Michael Cheng; Silver/Maxima Cum Laude – Richard Fan, Suchita Nety, Jonathan Cho, Nikhil Baradwaj, Rahul Desirazu, Eric Zhang, Sean Fernandes, Ravi Tadinada; Magna Cum Laude – Nisha Bhikha; Cum Laude – Jacob Hoffman, Laura Pedrotti
The California Junior Classical League Convention came to Blackford in late March for a weekend of toga-clad competition. In the end, Harker students graced many top spots. US participants tied for first place overall and shared second place in the HS Advanced Certamen (Latin quiz bowl) category.
US students had many stand-out individual performances. Brandon Araki, Gr. 11, earned first in Vocabulary and second in Ancient Geography. Araki also took second in Certamen, as did classmates Monisha Dilip and Alex Han and senior Alex Hu. Han also finished first in Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations and Latin derivatives. Maggie Woods, Gr. 11, took first in Reading Comprehension and Pentathlon. Sophia Gilman, Gr. 12, finished second in Chess and fourth in Advanced Reading Comprehension, while Sohini Khan, Gr. 11, came in second in Advanced Grammar and fourth in Advanced Reading Comprehension.
At HS Level Three, Harker swept Sight-Reading Latin Prose with freshmen Prag Batra, Jessica Lin, Ramya Rangan earning first, second and third, respectively. Similarly, Rangan, Alexander Hsu, Gr. 9 and April Luo, Gr. 10, swept Advanced Reading Comprehension. Batra also earned third in Dramatic Interpretation of Poetry. Lin took first in Roman Daily Life and fourth in Roman History and Latin Derivatives. Rangan earned third in Dramatic Interpretation of Prose and fourth in Advanced Grammar, Phillip Oung, Gr. 9, placed second in Mythology while Christophe Pellissier, Gr. 9, placed third in Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations.
Eric Henshall, Gr. 9 and Daniel Nguyen, Gr. 12, took third and fourth places in High School Level One Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations, respectively.
The MS also had a very successful weekend, taking first place overall, second in the Scrapbook contest and third in MS Advanced Certamen. Oishi Banerjee, Gr. 7, was the big winner, earning first place in all individual categories: Arts, Academic and Combined. Banerjee placed first in Original Poetry and Advanced Daily Life, second in Advanced Latin Oratory, Dramatic Interpretation and Mythology, and third in That’s Entertainment and Modern Myth. Banerjee even placed in the high-school level Vocal contest, taking third. Her team, which included classmates Kevin Duraiswamy and Brian Tuan, placed third in the MS Advanced Team Certamen.
Jenny Chen, Gr. 8, took first in the Girls 400 and 100-meter track races, and tennis, tied for second Advanced Reading Comprehension and took second in Advanced Grammar.
Kevin Duraiswamy, Gr. 7, took first in the small models contest, won second in Advanced Reading Comprehension and Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations, and third in Advanced Latin Oratory.
Zina Jawadi, Gr. 7, earned first in Advanced Latin Oratory, second in MS 1 Sight Latin Reading, and third in the Girls 400 and 100-meter track races.
Eighth grader Suchita Nety’s team won first in the Open Certamen, second in the Greeting Cards and Advanced Pentathlon, and third in Advanced Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations. Madhuri Nori, Gr. 6, earned first in Dramatic Interpretation, third in Jewelry and MS 1 Reading Comprehension, and an Honorable Mention in MS 1 Mythology.
Ashvin Swaminathan, Gr. 8, took first in HS Level 2 Latin Oratory, MS Advanced Vocabulary and Advanced Grammar. His team also earned second in HS Level 2 Team Certamen with Gr. 8 teammates Pranav Sharma (winner of the MS Advanced Pentathlon and second in HS Level 2 Latin Oratory) and Richard Fan, who earned second and third spots in MS Advanced Ancient Geography and Advanced History, respectively.
Anika Ayyar, Gr. 7, won first in Dramatic Interpretation, third in the Team Certamen and Honorable Mentions in Daily Life and Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations.
Molly Wolfe, Gr. 8, took first in the essay contest, second in dance and third in Advanced Vocabulary.
Annirudh Ankola, Gr. 6, won first for Male Costume, second in Chess and third in Traditional Photography.
Angela Gu, Gr. 6, took first in MS Level 1 Mythology and Urvi Gupta, Gr. 7, placed first in Advanced Reading Comprehension. Her team took second in the Open Certamen.
In addition to taking second place in HS Level 2 Team Certamen with Swaminathan, Fan and Pranav Sharma, eighth grader Anuj Sharma (no relation) finished first in MS Advanced Mottoes, Quotes and Abbreviations.
Helena Huang, Gr. 7, took first in Piano and Rasika Raghavan, Gr. 6, placed first in Arts – Miscellaneous. Aadyot Bhatnagar, Gr. 6, earned first in Vocabulary and second in Derivatives. To add to his first place finish in Advanced Ancient Geography, Nik Datuashvilli, Gr. 8, took first in MS Open Certamen with teammates Suchita Nety, Gr. 8, and Nicky Semenza, Gr. 7.
In Multimedia, Simran Singh, Gr. 6, took second and an Honorable Mention in Level 1 Reading Comprehension. Seventh grader Allison Chang took second in Individual Scrapbook, while Michael Cheng, Gr. 8, was third in Advanced Grammar. Eighth graders Eric Zhang earned second in Advanced History, and Shannon Su received an Honorable Mention for Advanced Grammar. Other Honorable Mentions went to Richard Min, Gr. 7, for Advanced Mythology, Laura Pedrotti, Gr. 8, for Advanced Derivatives, Sahana Rangarajan, Gr. 6, for Level 1 Derivatives and Sahithya Prakash, Gr. 7 for Level 1 Reading Comprehension.