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Students receive 256 awards in Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

Last month, Harker middle and upper school students received 256 regional awards in the 2023 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, comprising 107 awards for art and 149 for literature. All of Harker’s 30 Gold Key winners are eligible for national awards, which will be announced in March. A national ceremony to honor all of this year’s national award winners will take place in June.

The full list of winners (some named multiple times to denote the number of awards they received) is as follows:

Art

Gold Key

Iris Cai, grade 10   

Iris Fu, grade 11    

Ramit Goyal, grade 11    

Angelina Hu, grade 11   

Siddhi Jain, grade 11   

Raeanne Li, grade 8  

Yueyao Li, grade 10    

Sydney Ling, grade 11    

Sophia Liu, grade 10    

Ashley Mo, grade 9    

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12    

Teresa Song, grade 7

Claire Su, grade 11    

Alena Suleiman, grade 11    

Cynthia Wang, grade 11   

Benjamin Xia, grade 9   

Austina Xu, grade 12   

Connie Xu, grade 9   

Selina Xu, grade 11   

Alison Yang, grade 10   

Albert Yao, grade 9   

Linda Zeng, grade 9   

Elizabeth Zhang, grade 8  

Silver Key

Iris Cai, grade 10

Jillian Cheng, grade 8

Laurel Davies, grade 11

Iris Fu, grade 11

Ariana Goetting, grade 11

Ramit Goyal, grade 11

Joy Hu, grade 9

Trisha Iyer, grade 11

Siddhi Jain, grade 11

Ally Lee, grade 12

Catherine Li, grade 11

Colin Li, grade 8

Raeanne Li, grade 8

Yueyao Li, grade 10

Sydney Ling, grade 11

Desiree Luo, grade 11

Ashley Mo, grade 9

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12

Julie Shi, grade 11

Teresa Song, grade 7

Alena Suleiman, grade 11

Brittany Tsui, grade 11

Cynthia Wang, grade 11

Michelle Wei, grade 11

Isabella Wu, grade 7

Vivian Wu, grade 8

Austina Xu, grade 12

Celina Xu, grade 9

Selina Xu, grade 11

Alison Yang, grade 10

Audrey Yang, grade 9

Albert Yao, grade 9

Linda Zeng, grade 9

Evan Zhang, grade 9

Sophia Zhu, grade 10

Honorable Mention

Ananya Bammi, grade 12

Iris Cai, grade 10  

Shareen Chahal, grade 11  

Jessica Chen, grade 8  

Karina Chen, grade 12  

Nanxi (Nancy) Chen, grade 8  

Keren Eisenberg, grade 10  

Mirabelle Feng, grade 10  

Iris Fu, grade 11  

Ariana Goetting, grade 11  

Ramit Goyal, grade 11  

Angelina Hu, grade 11  

Trisha Iyer, grade 11  

Siddhi Jain, grade 11  

Ally Lee, grade 12  

Catherine Li, grade 11  

Emma Li, grade 9  

Raeanne Li, grade 8

Yueyao Li, grade 10  

Helena Liang, grade 8

Sydney Ling, grade 11  

Sophia Liu, grade 10  

Claire Luo, grade 11  

Desiree Luo, grade 11  

Ashley Mo, grade 9  

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12  

Smrithi Sambamurthy, grade 12  

Julie Shi, grade 11  

Teresa Song, grade 7  

Claire Su, grade 11  

Alena Suleiman, grade 11  

Kurtis Tong, grade 12  

Cynthia Wang, grade 11  

Michelle Wei, grade 11  

Isabella Wu, grade 7 

Vivian Wu, grade 8 

Austina Xu, grade 12  

Celina Xu, grade 9  

Connie Xu, grade 9  

Olivia Xu, grade 11  

Selina Xu, grade 11  

Alison Yang, grade 10  

Cecilia Yang, grade 11  

Chloee Yang, grade 9  

Albert Yao, grade 9  

Linda Zeng, grade 9

Elizabeth Zhang, grade 8

Katelyn Zhao, grade 11  

Sophia Zhu, grade 10  

Literature

Gold Key

Iris Cai, grade 10, Poetry  

Iris Cai, grade 10, Poetry  

Emma Gao, grade 11, Critical Essay  

Helen Gu, grade 9, Poetry  

Helen Gu, grade 9, Poetry  

Helen Gu, grade 9, Poetry  

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Poetry  

Sydney Ling, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir  

Ashley Mo, grade 9, Poetry  

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12, Writing Portfolio  

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12, Poetry  

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12, Writing Portfolio  

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12, Poetry  

Ananya Pradhan, grade 9, Poetry  

Jessica Wang, grade 10, Flash Fiction  

Austina Xu, grade 12, Poetry  

Alison Yang, grade 10, Poetry  

Albert Yao, grade 9, Journalism  

Linda Zeng, grade 9, Personal Essay & Memoir  

Linda Zeng, grade 9, Short Story  

Ariel Zhang, grade 9, Poetry  

Ellie Zhou, grade 8, Short Story  

Silver Key

Tyler Beede, grade 12, Short Story

Iris Cai, grade 10, Poetry

Iris Cai, grade 10, Poetry

Iris Cai, grade 10, Poetry

Felix Chen, grade 10, Flash Fiction

Jillian Cheng, grade 8, Short Story

Emma Gao, grade 11, Journalism

Helen Gu, grade 9, Short Story

Helen Gu, grade 9, Poetry

Helen Gu, grade 9, Poetry

Joy Hu, grade 9, Critical Essay

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Humor

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Poetry

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Short Story

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Poetry

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Poetry

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Journalism

Eden Kelly, grade 9, Critical Essay

Catherine Li, grade 11, Critical Essay

Catherine Li, grade 11, Critical Essay

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Poetry

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Poetry

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Poetry

Sydney Ling, grade 11, Poetry

Sydney Ling, grade 11, Poetry

Desiree Luo, grade 11, Journalism

Anaya Mandal, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Katerina Matta, grade 10, Critical Essay

Edis Mesic, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12, Poetry

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12, Poetry

Ananya Pradhan, grade 9, Personal Essay & Memoir

Ameera Ramzan, grade 8, Critical Essay

Ameera Ramzan, grade 8, Critical Essay

Ashley Ruan, grade 12, Short Story

Tanisha Singh, grade 11, Humor

Kairui Sun, grade 9, Flash Fiction

Cynthia Wang, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Jessica Wang, grade 10, Flash Fiction

Jessica Wang, grade 10, Poetry

Selina Wang, grade 9, Flash Fiction

Selina Wang, grade 9, Flash Fiction

Michelle Wei, grade 11, Critical Essay

Austina Xu, grade 12, Critical Essay

Selina Xu, grade 11, Poetry

Alison Yang, grade 10, Personal Essay & Memoir

Tiantong Yang, grade 9, Short Story

Albert Yao, grade 9, Critical Essay

Medha Yarlagadda, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Ella Yee, grade 11, Critical Essay

Linda Zeng, grade 9, Science Fiction & Fantasy

Ariel Zhang, grade 9, Poetry

Evan Zhang, grade 9, Flash Fiction

Honorable Mention

Varun Bhupathi, grade 10, Critical Essay

Iris Cai, grade 10, Poetry

Iris Cai, grade 10, Poetry

Ainslie Chen, grade 10, Flash Fiction

Varun Fuloria, grade 11, Critical Essay

Varun Fuloria, grade 11, Critical Essay

Emma Gao, grade 11, Critical Essay

Emma Gao, grade 11, Critical Essay

Cyrus Ghane, grade 9, Flash Fiction

Ariana Goetting, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Ramit Goyal, grade 11, Critical Essay

Helen Gu, grade 9, Poetry

Shayla He, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Critical Essay

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Poetry

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Poetry

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Humor

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Poetry

Trisha Iyer, grade 11, Poetry

Siddhi Jain, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

David Jang, grade 11, Journalism

Ally Lee, grade 12, Flash Fiction

Catherine Li, grade 11, Critical Essay

Catherine Li, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Flash Fiction

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Poetry

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Poetry

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Poetry

Lindsay Li, grade 9, Science Fiction & Fantasy

Raeanne Li, grade 8, Poetry

Raeanne Li, grade 8, Flash Fiction

Raeanne Li, grade 8, Poetry

Jingjing Liang, grade 9, Flash Fiction

Daniel Lin, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Sydney Ling, grade 11, Poetry

Sydney Ling, grade 11, Critical Essay

Sydney Ling, grade 11, Critical Essay

Sydney Ling, grade 11, Critical Essay

Sydney Ling, grade 11, Poetry

Claire Luo, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Spencer Mak, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Katerina Matta, grade 10, Poetry

Katerina Matta, grade 10, Journalism

Katerina Matta, grade 10, Critical Essay

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12, Poetry

Sarah Fathima Mohammed, grade 12, Personal Essay & Memoir

Ameera Ramzan, grade 8, Critical Essay

Ameera Ramzan, grade 8, Science Fiction & Fantasy

Kabir Ramzan, grade 11, Critical Essay

Tanvi Sivakumar, grade 9, Poetry

Alena Suleiman, grade 11, Critical Essay

Cynthia Wang, grade 11, Poetry

Cynthia Wang, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Jessica Wang, grade 10, Flash Fiction

Kallie Wang, grade 9, Personal Essay & Memoir

Austina Xu, grade 12, Poetry

Olivia Xu, grade 11, Journalism

Olivia Xu, grade 11, Journalism

Selina Xu, grade 11, Personal Essay & Memoir

Selina Xu, grade 11, Poetry

Alison Yang, grade 10, Poetry

Alison Yang, grade 10, Poetry

Alison Yang, grade 10, Flash Fiction

Cecilia Yang, grade 11, Critical Essay

Albert Yao, grade 9, Critical Essay

Albert Yao, grade 9, Critical Essay

Albert Yao, grade 9, Critical Essay

Linda Zeng, grade 9, Poetry

Linda Zeng, grade 9, Flash Fiction

Ariel Zhang, grade 9, Poetry

Eddie Zhang, grade 9, Humor

Eddie Zhang, grade 9, Short Story

Eric Zhang, grade 10, Critical Essay

Sophia Zhu, grade 8, Flash Fiction

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Author Kyle Lukoff talks writing in Zoom appearance

Last week, author Kyle Lukoff spoke to middle school students via Zoom about his 2021 novel, “Too Bright to See.” Using the book as a reference point, Lukoff discussed some of the many important aspects of novel writing, such as world building. 

“You have to make a lot of decisions about the world your characters live in and the kinds of rules … that your characters have to follow,” he said. As an exercise, he asked to students to think about the kinds of rules for a story that takes place underwater, such as how to move about the world and how to breathe.

“Too Bright to See,” which is a ghost story, also has rules that its ghost must follow. The main character and the reader, Lukoff explained, are left to interpret what the novel’s ghost is trying to communicate by interacting with objects, since it cannot speak. If the ghost was able to explain itself clearly, “the story would be one chapter long and I wouldn’t have won any of these cool awards.”

Lukoff also stressed the importance of research, referencing his own experience writing “Too Bright to See,” which takes place in rural Vermont, a place he had never lived. “I was very worried about getting details wrong,” he said. “So far that hasn’t happened.”

Toward the end of the talk, Lukoff briefly talked about his next novel, which he said will be another middle-grade work that is “a little bit more advanced.” Like “Too Bright to See,” the main character will again be a transgender boy, drawing on Lukoff’s own existence as a transgender man. He also plans to include his experience as a Jewish person, incorporating Jewish folklore and history.

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Senior visits White House to read poetry, meet Jill Biden

Yesterday, senior Sarah Mohammed visited the White House to read her poetry at a ceremony honoring the 2022 National Student Poets! Mohammed was invited as one of last year’s National Student Poets. The reading was attended by first lady Jill Biden, who Mohammed took the opportunity to meet.

Mohammed’s numerous other accolades include being named a finalist in the 2021 YoungArts competition and earning more than a dozen Gold Keys in the 2021 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

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Harker group among the first to visit newly reopened Beat Museum

On Saturday, 14 Harker students were among the first guests at the newly reopened Beat Museum in San Francisco. The museum features many of the original works of the Beat Generation of American writers, including Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Neal Cassady and William S. Burroughs.

The museum was closed for the last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the annual field trip taken by the students in Charles Shuttleworth’s class on Jack Kerouac and the Beat Generation was also canceled. Upon hearing that the museum would be reopening, students jumped at the chance to visit.

During the visit, the students received a tour from Jerry Cimino, the museum’s owner, and listened to a talk by beat poet and biographer Neeli Cherkovski, who offered his perspectives on the Beat Generation’s great influence as a literary and social movement. The reopening was covered by the San Francisco Chronicle, which briefly mentioned the Harker students’ visit in their story on the event.

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Harker students win nearly 200 awards in 2021 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

The regional winners of the 2021 Bay Area Scholastic Art & Writing Awards were announced last week, and Harker students pulled in 189 awards (73 in art and 116 in writing). Sophomore Sarah Mohammed’s poem, “Homeland, Gone,” was selected as one of five nominees for the Bay Area Writing Region’s National American Voices Medal, the winner of which will be announced in March, along with all of this year’s national award winners. 

Harker won a total of 42 Gold Keys, 54 Silver Keys and 93 Honorable Mentions. Gold Key winners are eligible to win national awards, and all national award winners will be honored at a ceremony in June.

The complete list of Harker winners is as follows:

Art:

Name

Grade

Category

Award

Anoushka Buch

12

Design

Silver Key

Anoushka Buch

12

Design

Honorable Mention

Shareen Chahal

12

Photography

Gold Key

Dawson Chen

9

Drawing & Illustration

Honorable Mention

Karina Chen

11

Film & Animation

Silver Key

Karina Chen

10

Comic Art

Gold Key

Alice Feng

10

Digital Art

Honorable Mention

Alice Feng

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alice Feng

11

Photography

Silver Key

Alice Feng

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alice Feng

11

Photography

Gold Key

Alice Feng

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alice Feng

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alice Feng

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alice Feng

11

Sculpture

Gold Key

Alice Feng

11

Fashion

Silver Key

Mirabelle Feng

11

Fashion

Silver Key

Mirabelle Feng

8

Photography

Silver Key

Sonya He

8

Painting

Honorable Mention

Reagan Ka

10

Painting

Honorable Mention

Reagan Ka

11

Expanded Projects

Honorable Mention

Reagan Ka

11

Sculpture

Honorable Mention

Reagan Ka

11

Design

Honorable Mention

Ally Lee

11

Design

Honorable Mention

Michelle Liu

10

Digital Art

Silver Key

Michelle Liu

11

Digital Art

Honorable Mention

Michelle Liu

11

Design

Honorable Mention

Aastha Mangla

11

Expanded Projects

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Painting

Honorable Mention

Muthiah Panchanatham

10

Digital Art

Silver Key

Julie Shi

9

Digital Art

Silver Key

Claire Su

9

Digital Art

Silver Key

Alysa Suleiman

9

Painting

Honorable Mention

Alysa Suleiman

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alysa Suleiman

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alysa Suleiman

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Emily Tan

11

Photography

Silver Key

Emily Tan

11

“Editorial Cartoon sponsored by The Herb Block Foundation”

Honorable Mention

Nicole Tian

11

“Editorial Cartoon sponsored by The Herb Block Foundation”

Gold Key

Nicole Tian

11

Sculpture

Gold Key

Cynthia Wang

11

Expanded Projects

Honorable Mention

Esther Wu

9

Design

Honorable Mention

Esther Wu

11

Photography

Gold Key

Esther Wu

11

Photography

Silver Key

Esther Wu

11

Photography

Silver Key

Esther Wu

11

Photography

Silver Key

Austina Xu

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alina Yuan

10

Painting

Silver Key

Alina Yuan

11

Comic Art

Silver Key

Alina Yuan

11

Painting

Honorable Mention

Alina Yuan

11

Photography

Gold Key

Alex Zhai

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Alex Zhai

12

Sculpture

Silver Key

Alex Zhai

12

Sculpture

Honorable Mention

Alex Zhai

12

Photography

Gold Key

Alex Zhai

12

Photography

Honorable Mention

April Zhang

12

Photography

Silver Key

April Zhang

11

Design

Honorable Mention

Emily Zhou

11

Design

Silver Key

Emily Zhou

11

Photography

Honorable Mention

Gloria Zhu

11

Photography

Silver Key

Gloria Zhu

11

Design

Honorable Mention

Gloria Zhu

11

Design

Silver Key

Gloria Zhu

11

Digital Art

Honorable Mention

Gloria Zhu

11

Digital Art

Gold Key

Gloria Zhu

11

Digital Art

Honorable Mention

Gloria Zhu

11

Design

Gold Key

Gloria Zhu

11

Design

Honorable Mention

Gloria Zhu

11

Design

Honorable Mention

Gloria Zhu

11

Design

Honorable Mention

Helen Zhu

11

Photography

Silver Key

Helen Zhu

12

Photography

Gold Key

Helen Zhu

12

Photography

Gold Key

Writing:

Name

Grade

Category

Award

Ava Arasan

9

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Ava Arasan

9

Short Story

Silver Key

Saanvi Arora

10

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Hari Bhimaraju

12

Poetry

Silver Key

Julia Biswas

12

Critical Essay

Gold Key

Anoushka Buch

12

Short Story

Honorable Mention

Kabir Buch

9

Critical Essay

Silver Key

Erica Cai

11

Personal Essay & Memoir

Honorable Mention

Erica Cai

11

Personal Essay & Memoir

Honorable Mention

William Chien

11

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Alice Feng

11

Critical Essay

Silver Key

Varun Fuloria

9

Personal Essay & Memoir

Honorable Mention

Varun Fuloria

9

Critical Essay

Silver Key

Emma Gao

9

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Sophia Gottfried

11

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Sophia Gottfried

11

Critical Essay

Silver Key

Victoria Han

11

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Victoria Han

11

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Catherine He

11

Science Fiction & Fantasy

Gold Key

Catherine He

11

Short Story

Honorable Mention

Catherine He

11

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Catherine He

11

Poetry

Silver Key

Shayla He

9

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Trisha Iyer

9

Short Story

Gold Key

Trisha Iyer

9

Flash Fiction

Gold Key

Trisha Iyer

9

Poetry

Gold Key

Trisha Iyer

9

Short Story

Gold Key

Trisha Iyer

9

Humor

Gold Key

Trisha Iyer

9

Short Story

Gold Key

Trisha Iyer

9

Short Story

Silver Key

David Jang

9

Journalism

Gold Key

David Jang

9

Journalism

Honorable Mention

David Jang

9

Journalism

Honorable Mention

Laurie Jin

10

Journalism

Honorable Mention

Michelle Jin

10

Personal Essay & Memoir

Honorable Mention

Vivian Jin

12

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Vivian Jin

12

Flash Fiction

Honorable Mention

Alivia Li

11

Personal Essay & Memoir

Honorable Mention

Sydney Ling

9

Flash Fiction

Gold Key

Sydney Ling

9

Flash Fiction

Gold Key

Sydney Ling

9

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Sydney Ling

9

Flash Fiction

Honorable Mention

Sydney Ling

9

Poetry

Silver Key

Melody Luo

11

Personal Essay & Memoir

Honorable Mention

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Personal Essay & Memoir

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Personal Essay & Memoir

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Personal Essay & Memoir

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Gold Key • American Voices Nominee

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Flash Fiction

Honorable Mention

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Short Story

Honorable Mention

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Personal Essay & Memoir

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Personal Essay & Memoir

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Sarah Fathima Mohammed

10

Poetry

Silver Key

Kavita Murthy

11

Flash Fiction

Honorable Mention

Sophia Schafer-Wharton

7

Flash Fiction

Honorable Mention

Stephanie Shen

11

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Stephanie Shen

11

Poetry

Silver Key

Yejin Song

11

Journalism

Honorable Mention

Alena Suleiman

9

Personal Essay & Memoir

Gold Key

Arely Sun

11

Journalism

Honorable Mention

Arely Sun

11

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Emily Tan

11

Journalism

Honorable Mention

Nicole Tian

11

Critical Essay

Gold Key

Nicole Tian

11

Critical Essay

Silver Key

Sara Wan

10

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Cynthia Wang

9

Poetry

Gold Key

Cynthia Wang

9

Flash Fiction

Gold Key

Cynthia Wang

9

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Cynthia Wang

9

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Cynthia Wang

9

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Cynthia Wang

9

Poetry

Silver Key

Sophie Wang

12

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Sophie Wang

12

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Sophie Wang

12

Critical Essay

Silver Key

Sophie Wang

12

Journalism

Silver Key

Michelle Wei

9

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Nicholas Wei

10

Humor

Honorable Mention

Nicholas Wei

10

Personal Essay & Memoir

Silver Key

Carol Wininger

10

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Catherine Wong

9

Flash Fiction

Honorable Mention

Austina Xu

10

Humor

Gold Key

Anjali Yamasani

11

Short Story

Honorable Mention

Alison Yang

8

Personal Essay & Memoir

Honorable Mention

Cecilia Yang

9

Critical Essay

Silver Key

Alina Yuan

11

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Irene Yuan

11

Journalism

Honorable Mention

William Zhang

9

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Emily Zhou

11

Personal Essay & Memoir

Honorable Mention

Helen Zhu

12

Critical Essay

Honorable Mention

Sabrina Zhu

10

Poetry

Honorable Mention

Sally Zhu

10

Poetry

Honorable Mention
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Sophomore poet named finalist in YoungArts competition

Earlier this week, sophomore Sarah Mohammed was named a poetry finalist in the 2021 National YoungArts competition. It is the highest award offered by the National YoungArts Foundation. Her work was selected after a thorough adjudication process carried out by a panel of artists in the appropriate discipline. Mohammed is now eligible to join 20 other writing finalists to take part in National Young ArtsWeek+, which will include virtual classes and workshops with leading artists in a variety of fields. There also will be performances and a virtual exhibition of the finalists’ works. 

This honor also means that Mohammed may be nominated to become a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts. The National YoungArts Foundation, the agency responsible for selecting the scholars, nominates 60 artists every year to the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars.

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English teacher organizes summer alumni book club

Over the summer, upper school English teacher Chris Hurshman led a book club with several Harker alumni, meeting each week to discuss Fyodor Dostoevsky’s final novel, “The Brothers Karamazov.” 

“I was dreading losing connection with people and longing for a bit of intellectual community over the summer,” said Hurshman. “So I posted an open call to Harker alums on Facebook and invited them to join me in reading and discussing a long novel of their choice.” With similar summer reading activities already established with current students, Hurshman decided to “carry on that habit with our alums.”

“Karamazov” was selected via an online poll, edging out George Eliot’s “Middlemarch.” “When Mr. Hurshman reached out, I thought it was a great opportunity to get to know some new people and take my first step into Russian literature,” said Sana Pandey ‘20. “‘The Brothers Karamazov’ has been called one of the best books of all time, and I wanted to read it and hear about other people’s perspectives on it.”

“I was interested in participating because the book club seemed like a good way both to spend some time with my former classmates and also explore subjects not included within my college studies,” said Derek Yen ‘18, who is currently attending MIT.  “Between the interests of the student body and the structure of my coursework, I haven’t had as many opportunities to enjoy literature and participate in literary discussion in college.”

The club met each week via Zoom, and participants found both the reading and the discussions fruitful. “This might have been a byproduct of how ‘The Brothers Karamazov’ is written, but I really enjoyed the intellectual debates that some of the plot points or themes sparked,” said Pandey. “Oftentimes, even though book club was meant to last an hour, we would continue deliberating on the moral or social groundings of a character’s decisions and standpoints for at least an hour after we were supposed to end.”

Hurshman said he hopes that these organized discussions will continue, and possible topics for the next summer are already being discussed, “with some asking to read ‘Middlemarch’ and others to organize a discussion group centered on film or on poetry reading,” he said. “I’m hopeful that, regardless of its final form, this can become a growing tradition and that we’ll be able resume these conversations in person someday.”

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Grade 2 students honor their favorite folk tale characters at Ogre Awards

Yesterday, second graders held the annual Ogre Awards, in which 88 students celebrated the characters of their favorite folk tales from all over the world at a special ceremony. Students spent the previous months reading stories from various parts of the world, including China, India and Norway. Their favorite characters from each of these stories were then given special awards in a variety of categories at the show. Students from each grade 2 homeroom also dressed up as characters from the stories they’d read.

Each Ogre Awards also honors members of the Harker community. This year the show recognized grade 2 teachers Ali Bo, Ayesha Tahir, Kerri Clifford and Sejal Mehta.

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Student poems to appear in public as part of San Jose’s ‘Litter-ature’ art project

Five Harker upper school students’ poems were recently selected to be made into pieces of public art as part of the city of San Jose’s “Litter-ature” project. Ishani Cheshire and Annabelle Perng, both grade 12, and Sophia Gottfried, Katerina Fenner and Nathan Ohana, all grade 10, submitted poems highlighting environmental issues that have been used to make art pieces that in March will decorate 500 public litter cans in San Jose. The students’ poems and accompanying artwork can be viewed at the city of San Jose’s website.

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Guest offers literature students insight into Beat Generation authors

On Friday, students in Charles Shuttleworth’s class on Jack Kerouac and the Beat Generation received a special visit from Jami Cassady Ratto, daughter of influential beat writer Neal Cassady, whose works were a major influence on Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and other important counterculture writers. Joined by her husband, Randy, Ratto shared excerpts from a famous letter that Neal Cassady wrote to Kerouac, which had a major impact on the style that Kerouac later became famous for in works such as “On the Road.” She also reminisced about her time growing up in early 1960s Los Gatos and told stories about her father, Kerouac and other cultural icons of the time, including the Grateful Dead.

Julie Wheeler’s AP US History students were invited to sit in on one of the classes and were given a brief overview of the Beat Generation and its works by Shuttleworth’s students, covering the authors’ disillusionment with 1950s American culture, their jazz-influenced writing style and their importance to later counterculture movements.

“The students told me they really enjoyed the experience,” said Shuttleworth. “It was another opportunity for them to interact directly with a primary source and experience living history.”

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