JANUARY 2004 (VOL. 10, NO. 4)
A
M O N T H L Y
N E W S L E T T E R
F R O M
T H E
H A R K E R
S C H O O L
Harker Forms New Partnership with Shanghai School
inside S P E C I A L Alumni Edition Alumni Update .................. 20 Most recent graduating class reports in from college with great advice for our underclassmen ......................... 23 Staying dry part of the fun on annual Gr. 5 Headlands trip ... ....................................... 11
Harker and the Shanghai World Foreign Language Middle School (SWFLMS) of the People’s Republic of China officially signed a sisterschool agreement during the December visit of the Shanghai delegates, formalizing a relationship that began on a trial basis last year with an online student forum between the two schools.
JSA brings home awards from recent conference ............. 14 New foreign students at Harker share their stories ............ 16
The new agreement includes establishing an 8th grade student exchange beginning in the fall of 2004 and a pledge to continue to look for new ways to improve understanding between the two schools. Madame Peiming Luo, principal of SWFLMS, and Grace Zhu, English dept. chair, spent a
Mark Tantrum: both photos
week visiting Harker MS and US
See pages 8 & 9 for update!
est. 1893 • K-12 college prep
classrooms, meeting with administrators and teachers and visiting area attractions that the Shanghai students will tour during their winter 2005 visit (visa issues are still being addressed). Harker parent volunteers Carol Lam, Jo Leung, Sy-
Jye Her, Tammy Huang and Emily Shu served as ambassadors and translators for the guests, and Jian Chai, Harker’s US economics teacher, served as official interpreter during the sister-school agreement negotiations. “SWFLMS and Harker have a great deal in common,” said Diana Nichols, head of school. “They have a strong academic foundation and a priority to reach the whole child by offering courses in music, art, physical education and character development. We’re thrilled to add this school to our exciting international program offerings here at Harker.” (The area media also took a great deal of
interest in this new partnership. See In the News on page 3). SWFLMS is known in Shanghai as one of the strongest academic schools in the city, earning a number of honors for their work in teaching English. Bill Bost, international program director, visited Shanghai in November on behalf of Harker (with expenses paid by an anonymous donor) to get a first-hand look at the school, give a presentation on life at Harker, hold meetings with teachers, students and administrators and research some of the potential sites Harker students will see during their exchange visit. “We’ve had a wonder ful relationship with our sister school in Japan at the Tamagawa Gakuen, and we look forward to watching the cooperation between Harker and SWFLMS reach the same level,” said Bost.
Renowned Author Visits Harker Renowned author Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston spoke at an US assembly in December to discuss her book “Farewell to Manzanar” about the years she and her family spent in a Japanese internment camp in California. The book, written in 1973, has sold over a million copies and become a staple in secondary and college coursework. The author, now in her sixties, spent the better part of the day with our students, providing a rare opportunity for small group discussions in addition to her assembly presentation as part of the US Distinguished Speakers Series. She joined one of John Near’s US A.P. History classes and attended an intimate lunch in the conference room with selected students and faculty to further discuss her experiences. Students in attendance were Maya Hey, John Tepperman, Mina Lee, Stephanie Chun, Ashley Morighe, Vyvy Trinh, Joel Wright, Kamilla Khaiderov, Anita Gupte, Josh Zloof and Sumana Rao. Houston’s visit was arranged by Richard Hartzell, US division head, who launched the Distinguished Speakers Series as a forum for in-depth topic exploration as part of the weekly US assembly program. Hartzell said the students asked questions “nonstop” at the luncheon, and Houston was so impressed by the level of discourse that she agreed to continue the discussion with the same group and will be returning some time in March for her second luncheon. “Jeanne Houston has a keen interest in education,” said Hartzell. “Her visit to Harker is indicative of her sincere commitment to helping foster understanding in our nation’s future leaders.” Kudos to Hartzell for arranging this special visit, to our students for their lively questions and discussion and many thanks to Houston for sharing her experiences with our school community.
IMPORTANT editor’s note While Harker students and faculty continue to excel in so many ways, the most notable achievement this month is in the generous outpouring of donations of food, gifts, toys and song this holiday season. The holidays can be especially difficult for those in need. We particularly commend those who make a year-round commitment to service, such as the Key Club and the new freshman class project (see page 7). May the new year be full of health, happiness, love and more time to help those in need. —Pam Dickinson, Director Office of Communications pamd@harker.org
reminders
Harker to Lease Blackford High School Effective Fall 2005
New US Laptop Policy
As recently announced by Howard Nichols, president, and Diana Nichols, head of school, the Campbell Union High District Board of Supervisors approved Harker’s bid to lease the Blackford High School site at 3800 Blackford Avenue, San Jose, which is located about half way between the Saratoga and Bucknall campuses. Harker will take occupancy on July 1, 2005, and students in grades 6, 7 and 8 will then move to the Blackford location in the fall for the 2005-06 school year.
Beginning with the 2004-05 academic year, all US students will participate in Harker’s laptop computing program, in keeping with the recommendations of our Parent Technology Advisory Council. Harker’s existing program requires all juniors and seniors to have laptops, as well as all students in pre-calculus or advanced computer science classes. So far over 70% of our sophomores registered laptops for use on campus this year, indicating the widespread use of laptops even in those grades where it is not required.
“This opportunity came up very recently, and we’ve received an over whelmingly positive response from faculty and staff,” said Howard Nichols. Most families are aware of the challenge Harker faces with traffic and limited parking on both campuses, and space is tight as well for classrooms, theaters, performing arts, gymnasium use, robotics, assemblies and athletic fields. Since progress has not been as rapid as expected with much needed buildings scheduled in the Master Plan, the administration has been looking for alternate solutions for the immediate future. “This will give the middle school a wonder ful campus of its own while opening up much needed space at Bucknall and Saratoga for academics and extracurricular use. The move of these classes will also dramatically improve the current traffic and parking problems,” Nichols added. “This project has enormous benefits for the entire Harker community.” Ongoing information on this new expansion will be shared in the newsletter periodically, so watch for future updates.
Refer each month to the monthly printed calendar sent home, or go to Web calendars for detailed division calendars and full listings. Web calendars are updated throughout the month and reflect the most current information. ■ Mon., Jan. 19 - Martin Luther King holiday. No classes K-12.
Mark Tantrum
important dates
■ Sat., Jan 31, 1:30 p.m. - Harker vs. Lowell High School Quiz Bowl match takes place in KRON Channel 4 studios. Join the studio audience!
Time to Start Thinking Summer! ■ Summer Camp Enrollment Visit Web site as of Jan. 12 for forms and details Mon., Jan. 12 - Harker Summer Camp applications available online Jan. 20 - Feb. 6 - Priority registration for returning campers and current Harker students
■ Summer Institute Enrollment Visit Web site as of Jan. 26 for forms and details Mon., Jan. 26 - Summer Institute applications available online Jan 27-Feb 20 - Pre-AP Bio and Pre-AP Chem registration period (Note: applicants applying for Pre-AP Bio and Pre-AP Chem MUST enroll during this period. Decisions will be announced Feb 26. If there is availability after this period, placement will be made on a case by case basis). Feb. 9 - Summer Institute registration begins*
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Yasmin Ali
■ Sat., Jan 27, 12 p.m. - Harker vs. De La Salle Quiz Bowl match televised on KRON Channel 4
Harker recently recognized ambassadors, school picture helpers, Tamagawa volunteers, mailings helpers, Speech and Debate parents who helped with Harker's invitational tournament and Picnic volunteers at a thank-you luncheon. On Mar. 4 at our second recognition event of the year, Harker will honor and celebrate the successes of our many Fashion Show volunteers.
Harker will continue to leave the choice of operating system and laptop brand up to the families, to focus on student learning and innovation and not specific technology. The minimum and recommended specifications of laptop hardware and software for this year can be found at http:// faculty.harker.org/adm/ studenttechhelp/, and the standards for 2004-05 will be posted to this URL in the spring. There will be two laptop packages offered in the late spring for summer delivery: an accidental damage and theft insurance package, and online academic software purchases at a reduced rate delivered to the Harker bookstore. There will also be a low cost laptop diagnostic and rental program so that students whose laptops are disabled will not need to interrupt their work. Harker is very proud to lead in the use of technology to enhance student learning, and we’re excited to now extend this laptop program to all of our US students. If you have further questions, contact Daniel Hudkins, director of instructional technology, at danielh@harker.org.
CORRECTIONS Performing ar t teachers Monica McKinnon and Susan Nace, codirectors of the Harmonics, were missing from last month's list of talented Harker performing arts faculty we thanked for doing such a wonder ful job preparing our students for the event. Our sincerest apologies for this omission, and a special thanks to them both for their creative contributions to our programs. A special thanks to McKinnon who was the stage manager for the adorable Fairy Tale Follies!
Harker News — January 04
the news
Editor’s Note: Since the last In the News report in the October 2003 edition, Harker programs, students and teachers were noted 26 times in 13 different newspapers and media sources. Go Harker!
San Jose Mercury News • Bucknall students’ presentation of a gratitude basket to the firefighters at Station 14 to honor their hard work in the community was featured (Sept. 25). • US football team and coach Fred Barnes were profiled in an article highlighting their ability to “outsmart” opponents (Sept. 25). • Weekly features, “Teacher of the Week” and “Cool Kids,” profiled Tara McFarland, kindergarten teacher, (Oct. 2) and Thomas McMahon, Gr. 12, (Oct. 2). • Harker Conservatory’s newly created version of “Hamlet” was promoted for its unique tag team style acting, with comments from Jeffrey Draper, director, (Nov. 20). • Five Bucknall students, Jasmine Nee, Shireen Moshkelani, John Ammatuna, Victoria Vu and Naomi So, were published in a Thanksgiving Day feature of poems, articles, art and photos from area students explaining what they were thankful for (Nov. 27). Note: Kate Shanahan encouraged her class to participate and told them if their work was selected to be published, she would take them all out to lunch. “Looks like I have five lunch dates,” she laughed. • Harker’s winning bid for the Blackford High School site was featured in the Valley Extra section (Dec. 9). • Seven Los Gatos and Saratoga US students were recognized as National Merit Scholarship Finalists in the weekly Guide in that area: Peter Combs, Matthew Vucurevich, Eric Berglund, Kathryn Lee, Karan Lodha, Vivek Saraswat and Albert Wu (Oct. 2). • Harker graduate, Brian Biskeborn, was noted for receiving a $1,000 scholarship for his continued study of Latin at the college level (Sept. 27). • Two Harker athletes garnered honorable mentions for football in the Athlete of the Week feature: AJ Reid (Oct. 29) and Matt Vucurevich (Oct. 15). Harker News — January 04
• Harker’s new sister-school relationship with the Shanghai World Foreign Language Middle School (SWFLMS) and the visit by Madame Luo, SWFLMS principal, was reported in two Chinese language newspapers, World Journal (Dec. 3) and Sing Tao Daily (Dec. 6), and on the KTSF Channel 26 evening news in both Cantonese and Mandarin (Dec. 4), and in the English language World Journal newspaper.
Other Media Notes • US English teacher Marc Hufnagl’s British Literature project, The Canterbury DigiTales, was awarded 3rd place in the iLife Educator Awards, and the iLife movie of junior Emily Hsi is featured at www.apple.com/ education/ilifeawards. • Freshman Julia Havard’s bronze medal finish at the Bay Cup Open Women’s Saber (Fencing) Competition garnered her a photo in the Saratoga News (Oct. 1). • Two Los Altos students were recognized as National Merit Scholarship Finalists in the Los Altos Town Crier: Allison Kwong and Joshua Zloof (Oct. 8). • An article by MS Digital Music teacher Mark Vail published in the online M-Audio.com magazine (Nov. 2003).“The Classroom of the Future” highlighted Harker’s use of software and technology in this study of music elective. • Junior Alan Malek was profiled by the Los Gatos Weekly Times, highlighting his success on AP exams and his participation in Robotics (Nov. 5).
STAFF
Mark Tantrum: both photos
IN
update
■ Harker teachers and counselors Pat White, MS history, Vandana Kadam, MS math, Lorna Claerbout, MS science, and Diane Bick, US counselor (Gr. 10 and 11), attended the 9th annual Learning and the Brain Conference this fall held in Boston, MA. The conference, which brought together preeminent neuroscientists and educators to discuss the latest research on the brain and practical applications in schools, focused on memory, motivation and achievement. Keynote speakers included, James Comer, M.D., and Steven Pinker, Ph.D., and author of “The Blank Slate.” “The information shared has changed the way I work with some students, and I’ve already seen some positive results,” said Bick. Most of the workshops catered to educators and included sessions regarding overcoming dyslexia, per formance of students with language disorders, motivating students, and how yoga can improve student memory and
release stress. “I was amazed at the connections I was able to make when I heard the neuroscientists and the educators talk about the working of the brain and how certain things affect learning,” commented Kadam. “Of course, the thing that we have always said is still as good as gold,” she laughed. “A good night’s sleep and a good breakfast improve student per formance tremendously. They mentioned that a well-rested student performed better compared to another who did not sleep well.” White reported that attendees learned that the brain creates new neural pathways and connections when it becomes excited about something or by something; that learning is connected to interest and enthusiasm; and that physical activity also plays a significant role. “We hope to apply these findings to our teaching methodology in order to be more effective and improve the function of long term memory,” she added.
“I feel very fortunate to have been able to attend this highly stimulating conference,” said Claerbout. “I’m using many of the ideas I learned there to enrich my classroom at Harker.” Note: Faculty professional development is partially funded by our annual giving donors – many thanks to those parents who support annual giving and make workshops like this possible for our teachers. ■ Harker photo intern Mark Tantrum recently won first place in a photo contest for the Oakland Convention and Visitors Bureau for his black and white photo of a building in downtown Oakland. His photo will be one of several used throughout the year in marketing materials for the city. Congratulations, Mark!
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PERForMING
arts Over 45 US actors, production crew members and house staff were involved in the 2003 fall production of "Hamlet," directed by theatre arts instructor Jeffrey Draper. Draper's version of the Shakespeare classic featured a seamlessly executed casting of four students playing the role of Hamlet (two males and two females) in modern-day trappings, with wonderful performances by the entire ensemble. Special kudos to Brian Larsen (technical director), Paul Vallerga (set designer) and Natti Pierce-Thompson (lighting designer) for their creative contributions to this outstanding production, to all of our student per formers who, though we know the story well, kept us on the edge of our seats, and to Draper for his original approach and for providing another amazing opportunity for our students to stretch and grow theatrically. Well done!
Chris Daren, all photos
The Dinner and Theatre event for this year's Conser vator y production of “Hamlet” was a Scandinavian-inspired buffet held in the Edge in honor of the King and Queen of Denmark, with fitting pre-dinner entertainment provided by students in our Chamber Music program. The cast made a special appearance for the guests, staging a wedding reception toast between the characters - many thanks to those who supported this event, and to our cast members for setting the stage!
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Harker News — January 04
PERFORMING
arts
Dec. 4 - Harker Holiday Concert
JAZZ ENSEMBLE: Joshua Kwan, Alex Tearse-Doyle, Ariane Vartanian, Michael Kim, Surbhi Mahendru, Joshua Karnes, Tao Lei, Louis Prusa, Roger Kim, Siddarth Satish, Alyssa Donovan, Lauren Gutstein, Justin Wu, Jeff Le, Nikhil Deshmukh
Over 85 talented Harker students, ranging from grade 4 to 12, performed at the Holiday Concert held Dec. 4 at the Bucknall gym. The evening began with a 6 p.m. reception with refreshments and the music of the Harker Jazz Ensemble featuring “girl singer” Lauren Gutstein. The one-hour concert that
GUYS & DOLLS: Ananya Anand, Grace Hudkins, Emily Carr, Natasha Jeswani, Elizabeth Cutler, Jasleen Kahlon, Pratusha Erraballi, Farrah Ng, Nirupama Gadagottu, Vivek Reddy, Nazia Gangani, Eugenia Sorotokin, Kaavya Gowda, Andrew Stanek, Shreya Gowda, Debra Yen, Ana Henderson THE BUCKNALL ORCHESTRA: Sonya Huang, Alex Han, Patricia Huang, Ashvin Swaminathan, Dylan Qian, Mark Roh, Andrew Wei, Vincent Tao, Benjamin Yang, Vivian Huang, Maya Sathaye, Phillip Oung THE BUCKNALL STRINGS: Yash Khandwala, Joy Li, Payal Modi, Suchita Nety, Alysia Patel, Saurabh Sharan, Wilber Yang, Katherine Woodruff, Renee Tam, Varun Gudapati, Andrew Lee, Isha Patnaik, Michael Tsai, Rishi Mahendru
Mark Tantrum, all photos
followed included performances by Guys and Dolls, Harker String Orchestra, Harker Symphony Orchestra, Harker Winds, Bucknall Orchestra and the debut performance of the Bucknall String Class. A huge applause and thank you to instrumental director Richard Frazier and vocal director Sarah Lougheed, and to all of our talented per formers!
THE HARKER WINDS: Victor Auyeung, Justin Chin, Erica Chang, Ariane Vartanian, Robert Oh, Jaclyn Steger, Tanu Shenoy THE HARKER ORCHESTRA: Takeo Toyoshima, Joseph Chen, Glen Lee, Jason Han, Albert Chen, Thomas Wang, Jessica Wu, Daphne Gorman, Jennifer Owens*, Paul Paik, Anthony Chen, Tracy Chou, Nikhil Deshmukh, Charisma Kaushik, David Yao, Whitney Huang, Lisa Nakano, Nikhil Raghuram, Daniel Paik EXTRA WINDS AND PERCUSSION FOR HATIKVAH: Michael Kim, Joshua Kwan, Danae Romrell*, Surbhi Mahendur, Joshua Karnes, Alex TearseDoyle, Meghan Desale, Swathi Bhuma, Shruthi Bhuma, Siddarth Stish, Chris Nikoloff* *Harker faculty!
And other notes…
■ Storytelling Workshop Twenty five Harker MS students attended the Word Weavers’ Storytelling Workshop the weekend of Nov. 24 and 25. Taught by Mark Lewis, a two-time Emmy Awardwinning storyteller, entertainer and teacher, the workshop guided students through the process of creating and telling their own fantastic stories. Monica McKinnon, MS drama teacher, said that Lewis has created a systematic approach to weaving a stor y in which students begin by drawing ideas for characters, locations, magic objects, and special powers Harker News — January 04
from a customized deck of cards created by Lewis. Using these ideas as the framework, students fill in the details to write an original stor y. “Mark’s system allows students to create fantastic, quite elaborate, original stories that otherwise might have been difficult for them to imagine,” said McKinnon. “His idea cards are per fect catalysts for helping students create their own wonderful works.” Storytelling groups per formed their stories for the other members of the class on the final day of the workshop. This special workshop was one of several performing arts requirement options offered each year. ■ US Student Directed Showcase Sat., Jan. 24, 7 p.m. and Sun., Jan. 25, 2 p.m. Sunnyvale Community Theatre – visit the Web site for details!
US Conservatory Certificate candidates participated in a Broadway Jazz workshop in December, conducted by professional musical theater dancer and choreographer Joe Duffy.
Mark Tantrum
■ Passionately Preparing! Many of our talented students are rehearsing now for their performances at this year’s Lights, Camera, PASSION! fashion show fundraising event (see page 9 for details!)
At Press Time At press time the Bucknall campus was a flurry of afternoon and evening holiday performances and parties. The gym, which was gaily decorated for the Gr. 1, 2 and 3 annual holiday shows, filled with children dressed up in their holiday finest sharing poems, skits and lots of songs to the appreciative audiences. Students, parents and guests seemed to enjoy the sing-a-long at the end of each show, and each production left everyone feeling very merr y! Congratulations to all of these students for their wonderful performances, and special thanks to our Bucknall music teachers Michael Pease (Gr. 1 show) and Sarah Lougheed (Gr. 2 and 3 show) for orchestrating delightful shows to make our season bright for our children and families.
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COMMUNITY
outreach
Harker’s Holiday Outreach Touches Local Community ■ Bucknall Food Drive Students in Gr. 4 and 5 organized another successful Thanksgiving food drive for St. Justin’s Community Ministry, an organization in Santa Clara which feeds over 400 families at Thanksgiving time and serves the community throughout the year. Students in Gr. 1 and 2 filled large bins located outside the main lobby, and Gr. 3 to 6 students collected food in their classrooms.
members. Homerooms received a list with the number of family members, gender, ages, sizes, favorite colors and specific needs. Students then bought and wrapped presents for each member in an assigned family. Student council members collected the gifts and delivered the presents along with Jennifer Gargano to the center on Dec. 17. “Thank you so much for helping us once again this year. I can’t tell you how much it means to each and every adult and child that you help,” said Sheryl Pliskin from the Center. The Sobrato Center is a branch of the Emergency Housing Consortium.
■ Community Performances Our performing ar ts department annually arranges performance tours to bring the joyous sounds of young voices to our communities. This year the US Downbeat and Bel Canto, and the MS Harmonics and Guys and Dolls per formed at numerous community locations, including Lytton Gardens, Filoli Gardens, San Jose Fairmont, Forum Health Care Center, Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital, Mary Knoll Retirement Center, Santana Row, Stanford Shopping Center and the Rose Garden. Many thanks to our per forming arts students and faculty for bringing the holiday spirit to so many with your wonderful performances!
Bel Canto at Vallco
Jacinda Mein, Talon staff
■ Family Giving Tree US NHS and Key Club members turned into jolly gift-sorting elves on Dec. 20 when they shared their holiday spirit by joining Bay Area volunteers to sort bundles and piles of gifts for this worthy program.
■ Christmas In the Park US students Meghana Komati, Mina Lee, Roshni Mehra, Mariam Rangwala and Priya Takiar volunteered with Jaja Hsuan at the annual San Jose Christmas In the Park Holiday Parade by serving as
Service Awards Announced ■ Senior Mickey Selbo-Bruns has been selected by the US faculty as the Harker nominee for the 2004 Toyota Scholarship. The award recognizes graduating seniors who display excellence in community service and academic leadership. With over 380 service hours and a stellar academic record, Mickey continues to contribute her extra time as a Youth Representative for the Campfire USA Council Board of Directors.
Jaja Hsuan
Gr. 5 teacher Pat Walsh said he delivered four loads in his van during the week to keep the collection bins from overflowing! On the Friday before Thanksgiving break, 5th grade students picked up all the food bags from classrooms, carted them to the loading zone where parent volunteers loaded up five minivans and SUV’s to transport the food. Bucknall student body officers went along to help deliver the food at the dropoff location. ■ MS Adopt A Family MS homerooms participated once again in the Adopt A Family program at the Sobrato Family Living Center, adopting 15 families that included a total of 71 family
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US Downbeat at the Fairmont Hotel
Mark Tantrum
Terry Walsh: both photos
■ US Adopt-A-Youth Adviser groups supported annual holiday giving efforts by adopting youth from the Sobrato Family Living Center’s Youth Shelter and Transitional Housing programs, providing wrapped and personalized gifts for 85 homeless teens. The youth and their case managers were pleasantly surprised and very thankful for the generosity of their Harker friends.
Unit Liaisons. Hsuan said they had a jolly good time escorting units of the parade, which was promoted by numerous Bay Area radio stations and will be televised by NBC-11 on Christmas Day.
■ Junior Gregory Perkins has been nominated as the Harker honoree for the 2004 Prudential Award that recognizes students who have displayed “outstanding acts of community service.” In addition to serving as the California Youth Leader for Stories of Service, Greg has traveled across the nation to give presentations about the project and has played an instrumental role in training volunteers. He has logged an amazing 656 service hours already this year!
Harker News — January 04
ANNUAL
■ During the Freshmen Community Service Day, US teacher Cathy Snider’s advisory group went to the Sobrato Emergency Housing Consortium, which houses homeless families or teens, many of whom have fled situations of violence or abuse. They learned that often victims of family abuse or homelessness appear at the shelter with absolutely nothing, and that one of the greatest ongoing needs at the shelter is for basic toiletries, such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, shampoo, shaving items, etc. Snider’s group came up with the idea of gathering extra toiletry items that people might have around the home, for example from large quantity Costco purchases or small hotel samples, and bring them in. The entire freshman class voted to take this on as an ongoing project. Collection boxes are placed in various locations on the campus, and items collected will be delivered to Sobrato at the end of each month. We’re hoping that everyone can help with this worthy cause! ■ Special thanks go to US students Rami Antoun, Jonathan Chang, Kathy Peng and Rahul Reddy for participating in the November habitat restoration project at Stanford. These students helped build new shelter for endangered salamanders by planting numerous potted herbaceous grasses. ■ US students Nirav Chitkara, Gopi Narra, Jaya Pareek, Aalok Patel, Aseem Shukla, Shannon Tan, and Amira Valliani volunteered at a music performance on Dec. 6 to help raise funds for the Foundation for Excellence’s outreach program. The Foundation provides scholarships for promising students in India who do not have the financial resources for higher education. Harker News — January 04
Annual Giving Campaign Update: ■ NEW - $15,000 matching challenge fund aimed at increasing new family participation! ■ 53% of our current families have made gifts or pledges so far. ■ 80% of $1 million in funds needed to support student programs this year has been received to date. ■ Where does your class rank? Check out class participation graphs posted on both campuses!
Attention All Alumni! We hope you’ve had the opportunity to reconnect with former classmates and attend community events, including Homecoming and the 53rd Annual Picnic! As alumni, you are an integral part of our success as a school, and we have some exciting donor-related news we’d like to share: • NEW - A generous Harker family has established a new $10,000 matching challenge gift fund. This will allow all gifts from alumni AND parents of alumni to be matched dollar-for-dollar, thus doubling your gift! • Your participation in The Harker Fund via Annual Giving, the Picnic or the Fashion Show supports programs, resources and enhancements for all students. Visit us online at www.harker.org for updated Harker Fund news, online giving, event information and more. • When you contribute, you will be recognized in our class alumni section of the Annual Report, our donor publication mailed to the Harker community. • Interested in attending the first Harker Fashion Show with your classmates? Reserve seats for a table today see page 8 for details! On behalf of the entire Harker family, we thank you for your continued support in providing the “margin of excellence.” Happy holidays and best wishes for the new year! — Bran-Dee Torres, Donor Relations Manager, brandeet@harker.org
Bucknall students are thoroughly enjoying the new playground equipment designed and created with the help of Kim Coulter, recreation director, and Dan Rohrer, Bucknall campus facilities manager, and made possible through Annual Giving funds. This new equipment was recently installed on the campus, replacing an older playground structure. “The new playground is age-appropriate for the elementary students and serves a dual purpose for the P.E. department faculty who will use it to test the upper body strength of the students,” said Kim Coulter, recreation director. A group of Gr. 6 students were asked what they thought of the new equipment. “It’s awesome!” said Valerie Motro. Brea Borlas said he likes the “triple ring fling,” and Supna Saxena agreed, adding that it’s “hard, but fun.” Zaynah Sadiq said, “The bicycle is really cool and challenging,” and that “it’s better than the old playground.” Kent Arai said, “The swing out apparatus presents a challenge,” and Colby Rapson simply enthuses, “I like it - it’s fun!” We’re sure the students and the P.E. faculty will enjoy this new equipment for years to come. THANKS! Your gift to the 200304 Annual Giving Campaign directly and immediately benefits Harker students and faculty by providing the “margin of excellence” in so many of our programs in this issue, such as:
Faculty Workshop, pg. 3 Yoga at Bucknall, pg. 10 US Performing Arts: “Hamlet” production, page 4
A very special thanks to the Banerjee/Chopra and Davis families for their time and support in producing the Holiday Stocking letters sent to all Harker families. We applaud their hard work and commitment to increasing overall parent participation!
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MaryJo Townzen
■ US Key Club members and faculty raised $189 in coins for UNICEF during Halloween week. Proceeds support UNICEF’s programs in health care and education for developing countries.
Noteworthy News for the New Year!
THANKS
■ US Key Club members have begun their new ongoing visitations with the Sobrato Emergency Housing Consortium – Baccardo Center in San Jose. Members plan to share their time with the children in the Family Division by creating holiday crafts, playing games and reading together.
giving
FASHION Fri., Feb. 6, 2004 Fairmont Hotel, San Jose
11:00 a.m. Luncheon Fashion Show $75 per person
5:30 p.m. Dinner Gala Fashion Show Live Auction and Dancing to The Fundamentals $150 per person
show 2004 Lights, Camera…PASSION! Celebrating our Passion for Education Tickets, Tickets – Purchase Your Tickets! Now Online! Reserve your seats now – the sooner you make your reservation, the closer you’ll be to the fun of the runway action! Friends and families can request seating together, even if you don’t need an entire table. Tickets can be purchased online or you can send your RSVP card from your invitation.
■ Fabulous Special Room Rate
■ The Grand Prize
Don’t miss this opportunity to support your children’s school and treat your sweetheart to an early Valentine’s night out, complete with cocktails, martini bar, entertainment, dinner, dancing, and a fabulous room rate of only $99, a Fairmont exclusive for Harker Fashion Show guests. Make your Fairmont reservations before January 20 to secure this special rate!
Your $100 donation could net you a one-year tuition at Harker (valued at up to $22,000) or $15,000 cash as our Grand Prize Winner! Even if you don’t have a student at Harker, you can probably think of
■ Electrifying Entertainment* Student, parent and faculty models, hosts and hostesses from the Upper School, and performances by Harker’s premier per forming ar ts groups *See Details, pg. 9
■ The Six Passion Showcases Every Passion Showcase, worth $5,000+ each, will include items such as restaurant and hotel gift certificates, spa treatments, software, luggage, home decor and more — see separate insert in this issue!
■ Fantastic Food
something special you could do with $15,000! With only 500 Grand Prize tickets being sold, the odds are better than Vegas - don’t miss your chance to be a winner – go online to purchase grand prize tickets before they sell out.
■ Lively Auction A short live auction of exquisite one-of-a-kind items at the dinner gala event!
Featuring the fanciful cuisine of the Fairmont Hotel
“The Fundamentals are my favorite band. They are totally entertaining and completely professional. To me the music is the key to any successful event and the Fundamentals are
Proceeds benefit our
the best.”
children through the
—Harry Denton, owner of the famous Starlight Room, Drake Hotel, San Francisco
Harker Scholarship Fund, Teachers’ Fund and new Math, Science and
Dancing with The Fundamentals Dance the night away at the evening event with this “Best of the Bay” band as they play a fun mix of Motown, Disco, Rock n’ Roll classics, and Big Band and Swing dance and party tunes.
Technology Center. 8
Harker News — January 04
Electrifying Entertainment They’re sure to make you smile! So far over 75 students (and a few surprise entertainers) are gearing up for their big Lights, Cameras… PASSION performances, and the list is growing. The pre-show social hour will be highlighted with the musical stylings of the extremely talented MS and US instrumental ensembles and vocal groups, and the sophisticated US Dance Troupe will keep you entertained while you’re enjoying the fabulous Fairmont cuisine. During the Fashion Show, Harker alumna and Beach Blanket Babylon vocalist winner, Gabrielle DeMers (currently attending USC), will wow the crowd with her opening number from Aida, and you’ll be treated to standout performances from the US vocal group Downbeat and the Bucknall Dance Ensemble. Here are some of the fabulous student groups preparing to give some of the top performances of the year. Watch next month for more!
Mark Tantrum
US DANCE TROUPE: Naeha Bhambhra, Lauren Harries, Julia Havard, Maya Hey, Debbie Liang, Aneesha Nilakantan, Jo Tsai, Aditi Uttarwar, Roberta Wolfson
BUCKNALL DANCE ENSEMBLE: Anisha Agarwal, Nikita Agrawal, John Ammatuna, Namrata Anand, Alison Axelrad, Veronica Bither, Margaret Krackeler, Michelle Lo, Malika Mehrotra, Shanna Polzin, Colby Rapson, James Seifert, Adrienne Wong, Kenny Wong
Chris Daren
DOWNBEAT: Neil Bhalerao, Kevin Busch, Estelle Charlu, Anshu Das, LeAnn Duong, Whitney Graves, Jason Gutstein, Emma Hawley, Jackie Laine, Kathryn Lee, Rachel Newman, Sahil Patel, Tommy Polzin, Lisa Schwebke, Sean Weinstock, Albert Wu
Meet Our Hosts and Hostesses with the Mostest At both the luncheon and dinner gala, these friendly Harker US students will escort you to your table, assist you with your last-minute donation drawing ticket purchases and help out in any way they can. Hats off to our Fashion Show Hosts and Hostesses: Tavishi Agarwal, Andrea Brisker, Hillary Brooks, Janine Carpenter, Juliana Daniil, Eric Gavarre, Erika Gudmundson, Anita Gupta, Ruchi Jhaveri, Cassie Kerkoff, Meghana Komati, Sara Laymoun, Sam Levinson, Jennifer Lin, Jessica Liu, Fiona Lundie, Thomas McMahon, Rachel Meltzer, Ravi Mishra, Linda Mohammadian, Shaun Mohan, Amit Mukherjee, Casey Near, Kevin Park, Amanda Polzin, Nicholas Rattazzi, Claire Rothstein, Danna Rubin, Ben Shapiro, Sam Singh, Nima Taheri, Shivani Tomar, Humsa Venkatesh, Josh Zloof.
CALLING ALL VOLUNTEERS! Be a Part of the Show Day Action! So many volunteers have worked so hard to make Lights, Camera… PASSION! a reality. Soon the big day will be here, and we’re looking for volunteers to help on show day. If you are attending the luncheon show, please consider putting in a few hours before the show begins, or maybe even working the evening show; dinner gala attendees, please consider a few hours at the luncheon show. Whether you prefer to be out in the crowds or behind the scenes, we have an opportunity for you! For information about specific volunteer opportunities, please see the separate Lights, Camera… PASSION! volunteer sheet included in this month’s newsletter, visit the Fashion Show Web site and click on Volunteers, or contact Sharon Mandell at Smandell@knightridder.com. Harker News — January 04
All You Need to Know To purchase Fashion Show, Grand Prize or Passion Showcase donation drawing tickets online, click the Fashion Show link at the Harker home page. For more information about the Fashion Show or donation drawing tickets, call the Fashion Show Hot Line at 408.345.0115 or email FashionShow@harker.org. Visit the Web for more info and passionate updates!
Final Note - Donations! Did you receive any great holiday gifts that just weren’t quite “you”? The Door Prize, Showcase and Auction committees would be happy to find a home for them! If you have items to donate to the Fashion Show cause, please contact Bill Bost at 345.9656 (billb@harker.org) or Karen Hansen at 354.5003 (karen-hansen1@comcast.net).
A PASSIONATE Thanks to our Advertisers and Sponsors! ■ Many thanks to our newest advertisers and cash sponsors: Alex Alonzo Accountancy Corporation, California Karate Academy, Dr. Alan Everett, DDS, HighTech Passport Ltd, Loral Wigs and Boutique, Mc Pharlin Sprinkles and Thomas, LLP, Mr. Neil Najibi, Odwalla, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Smith Barney: The Hall Walsworth Group, Alan and Theresa Ronald, Douglas L. KennedyTel-Star Mortgage, Venz Fine Photography and Yvette’s Institut De Beaute’.
■ And our thanks once again to our heritage advertisers and sponsors: Acuace Healthcare, Audasis Systems, Bains Development, the Banerjee/ Chopra Family, Bay Area Parent Magazine, Robert Bothman Construction, Campbell Music Center, Dr. Diane Casey, CH Jewelers, Chelsea Court Design, Citation Press, Classic Kids Photo, Comerica, Communicart Graphics and Printing, the Connell Family, Conrado Company, Dr. David Constant, Courtesy Chevrolet, Dr. Mark W Dalporto, Dancing Yogi, the Davis Family Foundation, Diamond Quality Printing, Dr. Aaron Ditlow, Joe Escobar Diamonds, Fast Frame, Fujii Florists, German Motor Specialists, GMS Global Inc., Golden Dragon West, the Good Guys, the Harris Family, Heritage Bank, Image Beauty Salon, Intero Real Estate Services, Douglas L. Kennedy, KnowledgeQuest Learning Center, Lexus of Stevens Creek, Linear Technology, Loera’s Upholstery and Design, Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw, LLP, David Mendoza Merrill Lynch, Mona’s Place, Newpath Ventures, Orrick Compensation and Benefits Group, Alain Pinel Realtors of Saratoga, PW Markets, Dr. Brian Quo, the Riedel Family, Alan and Theresa Ronald, San Jose Magazine, Santana Row, the Santora Family, the Sathaye Family Foundation, Silverleaf Antiques, Smith Barney: The Hall Walsworth Group, Stevens Creek Audi, TMFC, US Bank, Valley U.S. Inc., and Ventura Barnett Properties.
SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION: Shyamoli Banerjee (shyamolib@hotmail.com) or Archana Sathaye (archana@sathaye.com) Just like KQED, we accept any donation amount, and your Lights, Camera… PASSION! cash sponsorship counts toward your end of the year cumulative Harker Fund Gift Club total.
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Bucknall Students Part of National Yoga Trend For the third year Harker is offering a twice-weekly after-school yoga class on the Bucknall campus. Participation in this popular class taught by Zack Shaffer is now up to over 75 students and growing, a sure sign that the nationally touted benefits of yoga are catching on with our students. “Zack was eager to bring the benefits of yoga to our students, and we thought it was a good idea and worth giving it a try,” said BKN recreation director, Kim Coulter. “It’s now one of our most popular offerings.” Yoga is a series of exercises focused on relaxing the body and controlling how one breathes. “Breathing properly is one of the most important processes, not only in exercise, but also in daily life,” explained Shaffer. “Whether you are playing a sport or taking a test,
controlling your breath is essential to maintaining maximum potential in that activity.” Shaffer is trained in the art of Vinyasa and Ashtanga yoga with over five years of experience in the field. He practices yoga in Mountain View at the Yoga is Youthfulness studio and was excited about bringing yoga to the Harker campus to bring the calming and focusing powers of yoga to young people. “Yoga students learn the significance of taking a moment to reflect upon what they have accomplished throughout the day,” Shaffer said. He explained that students in his classes learn a variety of yoga poses that are not only good exercise, but teach each child to focus on the task at hand. “This provides them with a sense of balance that can carr y on to every aspect of life.” Shaffer also incorporates medita-
“Whether you are playing a sport or taking a test, controlling your breath is essential to maintaining maximum potential in that activity.”
training. “It gives me proper posture and flexibility…important to equestrian competitions. Hopefully, yoga will help me take home the “blue ribbon!” Shaffer added that one of his students who has severe asthma told him that she
go off to some bearded guru in the woods to do it. In fact, it’s becoming increasingly hard to avoid meditation. It’s offered in schools, hospitals, law firms, government buildings, corporate offices and prisons…In a confluence of Eastern
has actually been able to reduce some of her medications since she’s started the class, feeling that the class has improved her condition. In the Aug. 4, 2003, issue of Time Magazine, reporter Joel Stein writes: “Not only do studies show that meditation is boosting their
Mark Tantrum: all yoga photos
tion into the class each day as another form of relaxation. “Focusing on the self for an extended period of time is hard for anyone to do, especially children,” said Shaffer, who has the students meditate for a minimum of five minutes in each class. “Meditation slows the body down and relaxes not only the muscles, but also the brain. Meditation calms the soul and prepares an individual for any task, from test-taking to a basketball game.” Harker students seem to heartily agree. “It doesn’t only help with flexibility, but it also helps me breathe properly and helps my mind think,” said Oishi Banerjee, Gr. 2, of the class. Jennifer Pennell, Gr. 6, takes yoga because it helps with her equestrian
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mysticism and Western science, doctors are embracing meditation not because they think it’s hip or cool, but because scientific studies are beginning to show that it works….” Shaffer is clear on his intent with this popular after-school offering. “Per fection is not sought in my class. What I want each child to take with him or her from each class is a sense of inner strength, inner balance and inner peace.” (yoga students’) immune system, but brain scans suggest that it may be rewiring their brains to reduce stress…And they no longer have to
For more information about this or other after-school offerings, contact the BKN Recreation Dept. at lanam@harker.org or kimc@harker.org. Harker News — January 04
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Staying Dry Part of the Fun on Annual Marin Headlands Trip
Photos by Gr. 5 chaperones
Students in Gr. 5 enjoyed three days of outdoor education recently on the annual trip to the Marin Headlands Institute. Activities included long hikes netting views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Pacific Ocean and the beautiful hills and valleys of the Headlands. There were also trips to the tide pools to view limpits, coralline algae, sea stars and many other beautiful creatures. And students had the chance to try out their newly learned microscope expertise while looking at microscopic zooplankton and phytoplankton. Rain ensured that everyone put their rain gear to good use. “Students learned how to hike and eat lunch and be out in the wild during the rain and stay dry at the same time,” said Janet Blanquies, science teacher and trip organizer this year. “The kids were awesome—there was no complaining when plans needed to change because of the weather,” she added. An evening indoor campfire included skits with lots of jumping, twirling and shaking, and teachers Jason Oncay and Joe Chung had students laughing at their skit which had them switching roles with different wigs and talking like girls. The highlight of the evening was a hair fashion show, with the students “styling” the hair of Blanquies, Christy Vail and Kate Shanahan and then escorting them through the dorm. “The flashbulbs were flashing so often that I was actually blinded,” laughed Blanquies! Chaperones for the trip also included Pat Walsh, Rob Regan, Kristin Giammona, Kristen Janiak and Kathy Ferretti.
Best Buddies Share the Special Joy of Reading Gr. 1 teacher Rita Stone and Gr. 3 teacher Mary Jo Townzen are classroom neighbors, and now the students of the two grade levels are becoming best buddies, pairing up on Fri. afternoons a couple of times a month to share the joy of reading. Stone explained that the older students have the chance to feel
kids to be able to wave and say ‘hi’ to an older student and to get a wave and smile back. It really helps the first graders feel like an important part of our campus community,” said Stone. Townzen said that her students are disappointed those weeks where the schedule doesn’t accommodate buddy reading. We asked some of the students about their buddy reading experience, and here’s what they had to say:
Mark Tantrum: both photos
“I ask him questions and he gets them
right!” — Justin Weisbloom, Gr. 3 “I like to teach my buddy new words, and to hear expression and how she sounds out the words.” — Keri Clifford, Gr. 3 “My buddy reminds me of when I was little and my mom read to me, so I try my hardest to read nicely and make her happy.” —Sonia Sidhu, Gr. 3 “I’ve learned about lots of different animals and made a friend.” —Katy Sanchez, Gr. 1 “They read perfect stories!” —Eric Yu, Gr. 1 “My reading buddy is fun, and he is nice to me, too.” —Jordan Peetz, Gr. 1
proud of their advanced reading abilities, and the first graders have the wonderful opportunity to hear stories from their older buddies, with some new friendships being made. “It is such a treat for my Harker News — January 04
The two teachers are delighted with how well the buddy system is working. “If you come into one of our rooms last period Friday, you’ll see kids sitting on the floor, heads nearly touching, sharing their love of reading. What a great way to end our week,” said Stone. We couldn’t agree more!
■ Nearly all the students in Gr. 4 recently participated in a literary detective game called Who Dunnit? where students had to figure out which of the participating faculty members were “guilty” of a madeup crime. Marcie Gilbert, LS language arts teacher, began the game by telling the students there was a fictitious stor y on campus about a 4th grader named Ghoulie. The students needed to find out if the stor y was in fact true, and which teachers were involved in the story and in what capacity. Staff and faculty received a short description of what information his or her character knew, much like a murder myster y party. Students received handouts, and various clues were posted on Gilber t’s bulletin board. They deciphered clues - visual, written and oral - and interviewed par ticipating staff and faculty to unear th more evidence. Part of the process also included learning interviewing techniques. Gilber t explained that the purpose of the game was to reinforce continued on pg. 12
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correctly around the square. “The weather was perfect. The sun was out, and we could see the surrounding hills and the crops growing in the valley,” Giammona added.
literary terms, such as “foreshadow” and “red herring.” “Most important, the purpose was to convey to students the concept that interpretation of literature requires fitting together clues generated by the literary terms they are learning,” she said.
■ Kindergarten teacher Tara McFarland has created a Character Development Web site for the faculty and parent community that ties into the Bucknall character development program. The site includes ideas for parents, useful Web sites and literature related to character development. Go to McFarland's Web page and check it out! ■ Teacher, Kristen Giammona reported that the students in Gr. 4 enjoyed a field trip to Mission San Juan Bautista and the surrounding pueblo recently. With the help of 29 parent volunteers, students toured in individual groups and listened to a talk given by Ranger James who discussed Mission life in the upstairs of the old Plaza Hall. Students were given puzzle pieces of Mission buildings they had toured, which they had to place
Some volunteers are our quiet “behind-the-scenes” heroes, and this month’s Volunteer of the Month might just be one of our little known secrets on the Bucknall campus. Betsy Lindars, mother of David, Gr. 3, and Nicole, Gr. 6, enthusiastically responded to Kelly Espinosa’s plea early this fall for parent volunteers to work in the loading zone to help us alleviate some of the neighborhood traffic congestion at the Bucknall campus. While a number of parents eagerly expressed an interest, Betsy was the lone “faithful” who appeared at the first organizational morning meeting. She volunteered just about every morning for two months helping the front loading zone staff with the morning drop-off. With a big smile, a warm “Good morning,” and a hopeful wish to “Have a wonderful afternoon,” she assisted students out of their cars with their heavy backpacks. With the staff’s regular morning “guesstimate” of how the flow of traffic will actually play out each morning, Betsy has been a tremendous help. Please join us in expressing our deepest appreciation to Betsy for her dedication to helping us facilitate a smooth delivery and alleviate some of our traffic woes and overcrowded loading zones.
Jeannette Bhatia
The final product students had to produce to compete in the game was a short story where they justified, through their quoted conversations, reading, clues, etc., the through-line and veracity of Ghoulie’s story. Congratulations to these winning students (who received fun and silly awards that reflected the theme of the story!): Kaitlin Halloran, Noel Witcosky, Daryl Neubieser, Stephen Hughes and Nikhil Narayen.
■ Kindergarten teacher Jeanette Bhatia reported that the three language arts classes went on fun field trips recently to Chevy’s Restaurant where each class spent a morning taking a tour of the kitchen and dining area, practicing
volunteer of the month
—Nancy Reiley, Director of Community Relations
their serving skills by balancing cups on a serving tray, watching fresh tortilla shells being made and then making their own bean and cheese burritos. Bhatia said the trip tied into the character development lessons of sharing responsibility, team work, respect for others and their jobs, different types of communities and the roles within the communities. “It was a great hands-on experience, and the children enjoyed a great morning at Chevy’s,” she said. ■ After studying about how the pilgrims and Indians shared food on the first Thanksgiving, and reading a story called “Silly Tilly’s Thanksgiving Dinner,” in which friends all cooked their favorite recipes and brought the food to share with each other, the students in Linda Alexander’s Gr. 1 homeroom celebrated with a Thanksgiving Snack Feast of their own. Students brought their favorite snacks and treats to school and shared them with each other. “They were delicious, and we also took our yummy leftovers to the faculty room to share with others in our Harker family,” said Alexander.
■ In Dec., Gr. 3 science teacher Jason Pergament held a Lunar Eclipse party on the Saratoga blacktop where over 35 families enjoyed hot cocoa and set up telescopes. “Unfortunately the moon never showed up because of the cloud cover, but we had a great time anyway,” said Pergament. He also reported that Gr. 3 enjoyed a recent field trip to the California
Academy of Sciences. The trip included seeing the earthquake exhibit in preparation for their geology unit and a visit to the Morrison Planetarium to wrap up their astronomy unit. “The trip was a smashing success!” he said. “In January the museum will close for five years of renovations, so this was a great chance for the kids to see it before it closes.”
Bucknall students presented their December Gratitude Basket to the local firefighters as part of Harker's ongoing character development program. This new monthly Bucknall tradition provides students an opportunity to demonstrate good citizenship and thank these hard-working members of the community for all they do.
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Yasmin Ali, Class of '02, both photos
Aloke Bhandia
■ Gr. 1 teacher Cindy Proctor’s homeroom held two craft days recently where her students made holiday ornaments, thanks to the help of numerous parent volunteers. Some of the decorations included a candy garland, yarn tassels, button wreaths and marshmallow snowmen. “Our class tree looks amazing,” said Proctor! Harker News — January 04
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Cindy Kerr, MS math teacher and dept. chair, recently returned from a 10-day visit to our sister school in Japan as the fourth Harker teacher to participate in this annual exchange. She shares her impressions below: Harker’s ongoing relationship with our sister school in Japan, Tamagawa Gakuen, provided me with a unique opportunity to share not only math methodologies, but cultural similarities and differences as an exchange teacher in the middle and elementary divisions. I enjoyed many new experiences during my 10-day stay such as a traditional Japanese tea ceremony, wearing slippers in the classroom, eating eel, sashimi and octopus and helping to clean the school daily! I was pleased to note many similarities in teaching students from Tamagawa and Harker. They share an enthusiasm to learn new things and be challenged, a curiosity about a variety of topics and a respect for the people around them. Many schools can boast of a beautiful campus and academically
More Middle School
Mark Tantrum
■ Students gathered on the lawn in front of Shah Hall for an assembly to listen to Lem Sheppard
performing the History of African American Music. “It was impressive the way Mr. Sheppard was able to Harker News — January 04
successful students, Harker and Tamagawa among them, but the true measure of a school is best perceived by meeting the people who come daily to the campus. I felt very comfortable at Tamagawa because I found there the same spirit of warmth and graciousness amongst the administrators, teachers, staff and students as I experience daily at Harker. I was treated generously and graciously to the culture of Japan. Away from the campus, I visited
Tokyo and the beautiful Edo museum. The majesty of Mt. Fuji and the beauty of Hakone were breathtaking. On campus I was
easily weave information about the music’s history into his performance as he played the music,” said Jennifer Gargano, MS division head. Students agreed that the music was amazing, and we thank Sheppard for sharing his talents! ■ Harker’s MS newspaper, The Eagle’s Eye, is now offered exclusively online. The newspaper, in its 5th year, covers all aspects of Harker MS life, as well as reviews, humor pieces and current events. “Students write all the articles, take all the photos, draw all the pictures, edit copy, oversee
given the opportunity to teach classes in 3rd, 5th, 6th, 7th and 9th grades. The students enthusiastically involved themselves with my activities in topics ranging from number theory and inequalities in the middle school to Pentominoes, the binary code and architecture in the elementary school. Krypto and Algebra Sticks were popular openers across the grade levels. The students and faculty had never seen the many activities and manipulatives I brought with me and were thrilled when I announced that all materials were remaining at Tamagawa as a gift from Harker’s math department to theirs. The Tamagawa middle school math club will soon be participating (via video conference) in our Harker Math Invitational held every spring, and the Tamagawa kindergarten has asked for our curricular support as
deadlines, determine layout and do all of the desktop publishing,” said John Buckley, expository writing teacher and advisor for the group. Buckley added that he helped format this year’s first online issue, but students will do this for future issues. There were 31 student contributors to this year’s first issue, which can be viewed on Buckley’s Web page. The Eagle’s Eye meets during the Monday club time but is not an official club. The group is included in with Harmonics and the Service Club, and distinguished participating students are recognized with pins and medals during the Fine Arts and Special Activities Awards at the end of the academic year. ■ The MS Student Council has formally begun this year’s Above and Beyond program! This yearly
All photos courtesy of Tamagawa School
Annual Teacher Exchange Builds Bridges between Harker and Tamagawa
they begin to design a kindergarten program with a stronger academic tone. I feel certain that a bridge between our two K-8 math departments has been constructed which will only get stronger with time. In January, Harker will welcome Mr. Ryotaro Kishi, a 7th grade math teacher from Tamagawa, for a comparable 10-day visit. He will teach several 7th grade math classes and observe math classes in the middle and upper schools. I know he will be enthusiastically welcomed by the faculty, staff, administration and students at Harker, and I hope his memories of California will be as numerous and exciting as the ones I carried away from Tamagawa. —Cindy Kerr, MS Math Teacher and Dept. Chair
program is for teachers and staff to recognize and reward students for doing something that is kind, thoughtful, courteous or helpful by filling out an Above and Beyond slip. Students names are drawn at the weekly school meeting from the collected slips, and they are rewarded with a free dress pass or snack bar coupon. “This is a way of encouraging and rewarding positive behavior,” said Deanna Barnett, head of academic counseling. ■ The Axis Dance Company, a world-renowned Bay Area performance group made up of dancers with and without disabilities, awed our MS students at a recent assembly. The dancers, some of whom were in wheelchairs and some who used prosthetics, explained who they were and how continued on pg. 14
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continued from pg. 13 the group had come about while presenting examples of their dance techniques. “It was excellent,” said
saratoga to the Nationals last year,” said Stoll. Sun was ranked the number two individual, and Combs was ranked 7th out of the field of 32 participants. Harker’s per formance at this tournament may have earned them a trip to the national competition, so watch future editions for an update on this. Congratulations to all our Quiz Bowl team members, and remember to tune in on Sat., Jan. 27, at noon to KRON Channel 4 and watch the Harker vs. De La Salle match that was televised in November. You can also plan to be in the studio audience Sat., Jan. 31 at 1:30 p.m. when Harker competes against Lowell High School, SF. Visit Stoll’s Web site for more details!
Mark Tantrum
■ Harker joined debaters from 189 high schools across the country at the Glenbrooks National Debate Tournament in Deer field, Illinois recently. Matt Brandstetter, director of Harker forensics, Pat White, MS histor y teacher. “They were very inspiring, different in a good way and very interesting,” said Morgan Huber, Gr. 7. Patrice Lin, Gr. 7, added, “They taught people not to give up and to believe in yourself.” For more information about Axis visit www.axisdance.org.
Upper School ■ Harker B (Quiz Bowl team #2), consisting of Peter Combs, Samantha Fang and Lev Pisarsky, traveled to Stanford recently to compete in another Bay Area Academic League (BAAL) contest. Bradley Stoll, US math teacher and team advisor, said that even though they were shorthanded - teams normally have four players - they still managed to finish with two firsts and a second in three rounds of competition. “They were up against a very tough Lowell team, which happens to be the school that Harker will take on at the next Quiz Kids competition (see below),” said Stoll. Both Harker A and Harker B have earned 13 out of a possible 15 points, placing them in a tie for first place in BAAL. Another Harker team, led by their captain Yi Sun, along with Peter Combs, Vivek Bansal and Pisarsky, competed in the NAQT Quiz Bowl competition at Stanford in Dec. and finished second with a 7-2 record. “Their two losses - one in the championship match - came at the hands of Bentley, a team that went
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repor ted that Harker students distinguished themselves “at what is deemed to be the largest and most difficult tournament of the year:” Jerry Hong and Varoon Bhagat (from a field of 199 varsity policy teams) advanced to the field of 32 remaining teams after seven preliminary rounds of competition. Mina Lee and Arkajit Dey (from a field of 30 teams) advanced to the field of eight remaining teams after five preliminary rounds of competition. “Harker has now achieved both of these feats for two consecutive years,” said Brandstetter. He also reported that Harker students participated in the Damien Debates held in La Verne, California in November where over 300 high school students gathered for the two-day tournament competition. The students listed here won honors in two main divisions.
NOVICE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS First Place - Amira Valliani (5th speaker out of 54 contestants), defeating San Dieguito on a close 2-1 decision in the final round. Quarter-finalists: Priya Takiar and Shilpa Vadodaria (7th and 8th speakers respectively). Octofinalist: Christopher Xiao (4th speaker out of 54 contestants). NOVICE POLICY DEBATE Quarterfinalists: 1. Nicholas Tan and Tatsunori Hashimoto (3rd & 7th speakers out of 112 contestants), 2. Jessie Li and Christina Luu, 3. Daniel Paik and Annelise Han. Octofinalists: 1. Meghana Dhar and Avanti Deshpande, 2. Lynn Chang and Anjali Menon. “Kudos to Pranab Barman, Anshu Das, and Simon Linder who traveled to the tournament, coaching the novice teams and judging rounds as a community service,” added Brandstetter.
Harker JSA Members Shine at Nor-Cal Conference On Nov. 21 and 22, Harker’s JSA (Junior State of America) chapter attended the Fall 2003 Nor-Cal JSA Conference at the Santa Clara Marriott. Accompanied by the club’s faculty advisor, Daniel Hudkins, director of instructional technology, and US history teacher Ruth Meyers and her husband, Ernest, 23 members of the club took part in the student–led and run conference, examining this year’s topic, The Revolving Frontier. Over 900 students from Northern California were present and actively participating in the 21 debates and seven thought-talks that were organized to discuss the different perspectives on the American present and future. Congratulations to JSA members Natasha Sarin, Shivani Tomar and Thomas Polzin for their awards as Best Speakers in their debates. Sarin challenged the initiative that NASA eliminate its manned space flight program, while Tomar discussed a father’s
right to choose be a consideration in abortion. Polzin argued successfully against the resolution that all U.S. government actions be made public. Each received a gavel for his or her achievement. Hudkins repor ted, “Polzin’s accomplishment was particularly impressive as he had signed up and prepared the affirmative argument for his topic, only to discover that due to a JSA error, he was to present the negative side! With four hours to prepare, Polzin was able to research and draft a new presentation – one which was obviously convincing and successful!” JSA members are now looking forward to Congress 2004 in Sacramento, which will resemble a mock U.S. Con-
gress, and the spring convention in Santa Clara. Things will continue to heat up for JSA in 2004 with a mock presidential primary also in the works. Founded in 1934, JSA is a nationally based, student-run organization providing high school students with an opportunity to investigate and discuss politics, government, foreign affairs, the law and education. All photos by Daniel Hudkins
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Harker News — January 04
Matt Wong, Talon staff: both photos
On Fri., Nov. 21 the Spanish 3 Honors classes of Diana Moss and Abel Olivas were visited by Maura Donohue, parent of freshman Siobhan Stevenson, and two of her colleagues from Univision, the number one Spanish language television station in the Bay Area. Donohue, Kira Vilanova and Sandra Campos explained their individual roles and responsibilities, discussed possible career
opportunities for Spanish speakers and showed a short video about the Bay Area’s Hispanic market, Univision and several commercials in Spanish. Donohue, a nonnative speaker, learned most of her Spanish through her 25-year career in Hispanic media business. “I wanted to keep studying Spanish
and thought I could find an interesting job one day. It seems to have worked!” she said. Moss added, “Her entire presentation to the class was in excellent Spanish!” The classes followed up the visit with trips to the Univision studios in San Francisco on Thurs., Dec. 4 and Fri., Dec. 12 to learn more about the station and its employees. They met with Perla Rodriguez, community affairs manager, who described, in Spanish, the Harker News — January 04
organization of Univision and its role as the largest Spanishlanguage communications company in the nation. The students toured the station and were introduced to several key employees, including the general manager of the station. The visit concluded with attendance at a live broadcast of “Noticias 14,” the evening news show, and a visit to the technical room where all the computers, screens and mixers put the show together. Gracias especiales to Donahue and all of her colleagues for sharing their time and insights with our students, and to the following staff for chaperoning the students during this fascinating experience: Francoise Thompson, Isabel Garcia, Abel Olivas, Paul Pickering and Diana Moss.
Combating Stereotypes - Lauren Harries; French AP Literature: Language and Literature - Nima Taheri. Félicitations to these winners and kudos to all those who participated in the daily French question and poster contest! For those of you who would like to test your knowledge, here are the questions: 1) Which Belgian writer created Tin-tin? 2). I was a poet and president of Senegal. I am? 3).
The name of this famous gastronome has been given to a rumsoaked cake. Name the cake and the gastronome. 4). This Swiss mathematician and physicist’s most important work considered the basic proper ties of fluid flow, pressure, density and velocity. He comes from a long line of scientists. 5). The title of this author’s work is synonymous with “of a very large size.” Name the work and the author. Answers on back page!
Frosh/Soph Team Beats Upperclasswomen in Powder Puff Game
Michael Leonard: all photos except as noted
■ Univision Shares Insights with Spanish Students
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■ National French Week Trés Bien! During the week of Nov. 5-11, the US French instructors organized several activities to celebrate National French Week. Each day a French question was published in the daily bulletin that covered such topics as art, science, literature and culinary issues. Students submitted answers by e-mail and the following students answered four out of the five questions correctly: Arkajit Dey, Laena Keyashian and Andrew Tran. Trés bien! Celebrations continued with a poster contest open to all US French levels where selected posters, judged by Richard Hartzell, US division head, were displayed at various campus locations. Winners: French 1: The French-speaking world - Rachel Bareiss, Ashley Yang; French 2: Contemporary France - Jonathan Chang, Jonathan Charlu, Karena Chan, Anjana Dasu, Sid Satish; French 3: National Treasures - Janine Carpenter, Alex Tearse-Doyle, Asavari Gupte; French 4: Art & Culture - Peter Obara; French AP Language:
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The 2nd annual Powder Puff game recently pitted the freshmen and sophomores against the juniors and seniors. in an action-packed game commentated by US A.D., Jack Bither. With close calls, the game ended in a 7-0 score. Many thanks to the team members and to coaches Karriem Stinson and Theresa Smith (frosh/soph) and Tim Woods and Felicia Wiltz (junior/senior) for their fine efforts!
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Students from Slovakia and The Netherlands Make the Most of Year at Harker competitive – yelling, arguing over the rules and laughing at each other – just like a family!” Polzin added that when Shanna had her Tamagawa exchange visitor in October, “Oli was really good with her. After all, he’s an old hand at being in another country, with a different family.”
Senior Oliver Janik, from Bardejov, Slovakia, is here through a program started by retired U.S. foreign service officer and Stanford grad Art Breisky who now lives in Slovakia and sends up to eight top eastern Slovakian students to the U.S. to study for one year. Ivo Salemink, also a senior, from Arnhem, The Netherlands, is here through the EF Foundation for Foreign Study, a worldwide cultural exchange organization. This is the first visit to the U.S. for both students who are living with Harker families for the year, and the arrangement seems to be one of mutual fun, adventure and learning.
Oliver said he is thoroughly enjoying his host family and that they are very caring. “Sometimes they are a little crazy but always fun,” he chuckled. A self-proclaimed “computer maniac,” Oliver “loves his computer programming class and now knows more than his dad,” who taught him most of what he knew before he came since programming was not offered at his school. “In AP Computer Science, Oliver is learning two new programming languages — a difficult enough task for native English speakers,” said teacher Robb Cutler. “Oliver’s mastery of the material is a testament to his abilities, and he fits in so well, I completely forget he’s an exchange student.” Oliver said that Cutler and other teachers at Harker are much friendlier than Slovakian teachers, who he said tend to be very authoritative. “One of my favorite things about Harker is the teachers and how willing they are to help.” He’s looking forward to the new robot that Robotics is starting in January and said they don’t have anything like it at home. “They don’t have private schools in Slovakia…you don’t get to choose your classes - they have set
Kathy Polzin said Oliver’s adjustment to being a family member, along with her husband Steve and their children Shanna (Gr. 6), Amanda (Gr. 10) and Thomas (Gr. 12), was fast. “I have to remind him to call his parents,” Polzin laughed. She said Oli (Oliver’s nickname), who has a 16-year-old sister back home, has chores just like the other family members, loves everything they cook except sushi (a Polzin family favorite), and taught his host sisters a Slovakian card game that was a hit. “It got very
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said he’s glad he’s here. “Since I have to return to Bardejov to graduate, I’ll be a year behind my friends, but the opportunity and
“Best thing about Harker are the people – I’ve found some really nice friends.” —Oliver experience to come here were wellworth it!” On the top of Oliver’s list while here is “to not fail English” and to visit as many places as possible. He’ll be visiting New York City and Wash., D. C. over the winter break with the Polzins. Ivo, who has an older brother and sister and two dogs back home, is staying in the host family home of Danny Dunn (Harker’s technical director at the Bucknall campus) and her husband, Beric. Dunn said that since Ivo’s arrival, “We are getting out of the house more and having more fun – we can’t imagine what life was like with only two in our family and not three.” She added that some new traditions have enlivened their year. “St. Nick now visits our home on Dec. 5 and leaves gifts in shoes, not stockings. And we now say the Dutch ‘Toi, toi, toi!’ instead of ‘Break a leg’ before our shows.” Being a Harker “parent” as well as a teacher has “been quite a valuable learning experience,” and she said “the level of random silliness in the household has grown exponentially – that’s saying something in a theatre family!” Ivo thinks his host family is very “cool,” and his favorite thing about Harker is performing arts, which he said was only offered at his Dutch school is an after-school activity. He admits the biggest challenge has been the language, but feels playing Claudius 2 in the recent
“I miss all the bicycles and my moped though I would never drive here—way too scary.” —Ivo classes that everyone has to take,” he explained. “The hardest part about being here is coming home tired from school and doing homework,” Oliver admitted, but
wonder ful sense of humor and a very playful disposition,” said theatre arts teacher Jeffrey Draper, who directed “Hamlet” and also
production of “Hamlet” was a great experience. He’s looking forward to auditions for the dance production “Damn Yankees” and continued involvement in Guys Gig. “Ivo has a
has Ivo in several classes. “He collaborates with others quite easily and has had no trouble making many new friends here in the Harker Conservatory. It was great to see him succeed in working with Shakespeare for the first time…it’s such difficult text on top of being in a foreign language for him.” Ivo said the hardest part about Harker is “keeping up with the rest – language is a big issue in this.” He finds he spends much more time at Harker than he would at his school at home, which, like
Mark Tantrum: all photos
Harker’s progressive international programs expanded to another level this year, not only with the new sister school partnership with a school in Shanghai (see cover story), but with the exciting addition of two school-year foreign students from Europe for the 2002-03 school year.
Ivo’s school, has more set classes and fewer choices. “My Dutch school is a public school. There is no dress code, and the academic standards are not as high as Harker.” He, too, will return home to complete his high school requirements next year and take a national standardized test for university entrance. Both students have made new friends and participate in school activities and social events, but while they’ve enjoyed themselves, they both observed differences between here and their home countries. “At home we’d be dancing at discotheques with our Harker News — January 04
friends, listening to more technodance music and not much hip-hop or rap,” and they wouldn’t be “going to movies, malls to shop or eating at fast food places like American teens do.” For our Harker students, having these international students in our midst has provided day-to-day opportunities for learning about and understanding other cultures. Sophomore Lauren Harries, and fellow cast member in “Hamlet,” said about Ivo and Oliver: “It’s
saratoga especially neat to be able to be able to carr y on conversations with them and learn so many new aspects of life and thinking from different cultures. I’ve had the pleasure of conversing with Ivo on the differences between the social values of the United States and Holland, and also that of Europe as a whole. I am truly impressed with his insight and great communication abilities.” “What I see in them both is openmindedness and passion - Ivo with the per forming arts and Oliver with programming,” observed Maya Hey, senior. “They remind me that those two values are important in keeping an international perspective. The conversations that I have with them really make me realize how much our generation has in common despite the cultural differences. I would definitely love to go to Europe for a year!”
artists of the month ■ Aruna Bharathi, Gr. 12, has taken The Study of Visual Arts, Drawing, Ceramics and AP Art History at Harker. In this piece, made for a ceramics class, Bharathi explored curves and tried to obtain balance through the placement of the twodimensional plate and pebbles and the three-dimensional ball and globe. “Playing with the arcs of the hand and fabric helped me understand how to create a balanced composition,” said Bharathi. She kept the color scheme natural with leaf greens, rich browns and a soft suede color. In all, the composition serves as a study of curves and color. Her plans are to pursue a minor in art in college. ■ Jessika Scheerder, Gr. 12, designed this piece for a sculpture class but used her architectural ideas to create it. Scheerder said she particularly likes this piece because of the architechtural influence and especially enjoys working in stone. She attended the Parsons School of Design in New York City last summer, studying product design. She hopes to study either product design or advertising design in college. —Jaap Bongers, US art teacher and dept. chair
SPORTS Grades 4-8 The winter sports season is in full swing and the A1 boys basketball team, coached by Pete Anderson and Carson Carattini (’97) is off to a great start after a 42-27 victory over JLS. A1 girls basketball, coached by Chrissy Chang, lost their first game against Cabrillo MS, 44-52. At one point they were down by 18 but fought back to within 6 before losing by 8. A2 girls basketball lost their first game to Apostles Lutheran in a very close game, 15-17. Ashley Sukovez (’96) coaches the team. Coach Vonda Reid’s B1 girls basketball is off to a super start at 2-0! They won their first game 24-10 against Cabrillo MS and also beat Apostles Lutheran 26-14 in their most recent game. B2 boys basketball, coached by Alan Firth, won their first game against S.J. Christian 1614. The A2 boys, coached by Airto Smith; B1 boys, coached by Walid Fahmy; and B2 girls, coached by Leah Minnery, had not yet played a game at press time, so we look forward to bringing you news about these teams in the next newsletter. Gr. 4 boys and girls basketball has also been a huge success with close to 50 boys and about 25 girls playing intramurals out on the courts. The coaches have set up an intramural league that will run through the end of the season, and the kids are doing a wonderful job learning how to play in games. Jim McGovern, Josh Torres and Mike Saltzman (’94) coach the boys’ team and the girls’ team is coached by Melissa Dondero and Rebecca Esquivel. C and D girls and boys intramural soccer has been a lot of fun! With over 100 students in Gr. 5 and Gr. 6 participating in soccer, the fields are a buzz of activity. The Gr. 6 boys are coached by CJ Cali and Justin Sullivan, and Cyrus Merrill and Nick Gassmann coach Gr. 5. The girls Gr. 6 team is coached by Mel Robinson and Paula Bither and Mel McKenna and Bryan Enos coach Gr. 5. On Jan. 5 Gr. 4 will start soccer
Harker News — January 04
briefs and Gr. 5 will start basketball. Gr. 6 will start basketball Dec 15. Good luck to all the teams - Go Eagles! —Theresa “Smitty” Smith, Gr. 4-8 Athletic Director
Upper School As the winter sports season picks up, we would like to take a moment to recognize our many athletes who earned all-league honors this past fall season. In the Private School Athletic League (PSAL) Harker earned first team, second team, or honorable mention in football, soccer and cross country. Leading the way in football were five 1st team all-league selections: sophomore lineman Amit Mukhergee, sophomore defensive back/running back Jeff Liu, junior offensive lineman Eric Gavarre, junior safety Kevin Park, and junior quarterback Ben Shapiro. In soccer, the Eagles 12-5 team had six players earn all-league honors, with three players earning 1st team distinction. The top goalie in the nine-team league was our own sophomore goalie Naushad Godrej who was joined on the first
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team by senior winger Saahil Mehra and junior running mate Alex Dodd. Junior defenseman Kevin Busch, although injured for part of the season, still managed to impress enough coaches with his tough and gritty play to earn second team allleague. Additionally, senior defender Karan Lodha and freshman left wing Adam Rubin were recognized for their fine play by earning honorable mention all-league. Boys’ cross country was represented by CCS qualifier Sean Dyal, who hopes to continue his running career at the collegiate level. Sean Continued on pg. 18
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Continued from pg. 17 was Harker’s top runner for most of his four years on the team and is to be commended for his excellent contributions to our cross countr y program. Sean led the team to two Division Five state championship appearances his sophomore and junior years.
MVP Rebecca Chang is plying her trade at Penn this fall, so congratulations to Sumana for keeping the tradition alive! The Eagles also earned additional recognition when senior Vickie Duong and sophomore Mariah Bush were named to the Honorable Mention Team - congratulations go to all the girls for another fine season.
Competing in the West Bay Athletic League (WBAL) Harker girls distinguished themselves quite well this year. Leading off was the golf team, who not only won the league title but earned several all-league honors. 1st Team All-League and Harker Most Valuable Player went to Jennie Jenq, whose senior leadership and commitment will be sorely missed. Joining her on the all-league team was junior Audrey Leung, who will be looked upon as the team leader next fall as she enters her fourth year with the team. Audrey and Jennie distinguished Harker as the only team in the league with more than one player on the all-league team. Showing the depth that allowed the Eagles to win the league title, they placed two members on the second team as well, with freshman Elyse Kim and junior Tiffany Lau being recognized for their great season. Additionally, junior Colleen Lee was recognized with an honorable mention award, giving the Eagles five of the sixteen top awards, worthy of a league champion. The team was recognized in front of the entire student body, where Coach Bob Dowling presented Xin Wang and the girls mentioned above with 1st Place medals and the championship plaque.
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Rounding out the all league awards, 1st team tennis recognition was earned by junior Sonia Rastogi and senior Whitney Graves, who combined to win the WBAL doubles title, earning them a bid to the CCS doubles tournament where they won their first match before running into a tough Monta Vista squad in the second round.
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Not to be outdone, the girls’ volleyball team finished their season with their fourth consecutive trip to the CCS playoffs, bowing out to a tough Carmel HS team playing in front of an excited home crowd in Carmel. They were also well represented in postseason awards. The Eagles placed two seniors on the first team. Hitter Lisa Nakano and setter Sumana Rao were recognized as two of the league’s top performers. Sumana, a four-year varsity starter, hopes to continue her volleyball career at Ivy League member Columbia. She would be the third consecutive player that Coach Theresa Smith has sent on to Ivy League schools to play volleyball. Alexa Bush (’01) is spiking balls for Harvard University while three time team
Cross country girls were again led by senior Jennifer Shangkuan, who finished fourth in the WBAL league championship race to earn 1st team all-league. Jennifer has been the lady Eagles’ top runner for many years, and will be sorely missed by her coaches and teammates.
Congratulations to all of the players for their great accomplishments this past fall! Moving on to winter sports, basketball, soccer, and wrestling are in the middle of preseason games and matches. Currently, the girls varsity basketball team is sporting a 4-3 record, highlighted by a come from behind win over St. Lawrence. Down 39-34 with only a few minutes to go in the game, the
Eagles went on a 9-0 run to pull out the hard fought contest. Key contributions down the stretch were made by senior guard Jessica Liu, junior forward Jamie Trinh and freshman point guard Faustine Liao. The Eagles trailed most of the game until their final run of points. When the Eagles shoot the ball well, they can be tough to beat, as Fremont Christian found out. The hot shooting hand seemed to move from player to player as Casey Near, Surbhi Mahendru, Amanda Polzin, Vickie Duong, and Natasha Sarin all got into the lights out shooting performance as the Eagles raced to an easy 52-27 win. The team enters the Cupertino HS tournament with high hopes. The junior varsity team is off to a good start as well easily winning their first two games of the season. More on this freshman laden group in the next newsletter. The boys’ basketball team finished fourth in the Redwood Christian Tournament, giving back the title they won last year. At press time, they had won the first round game of the Valley Dublin tournament and will take on the host school for the right to play for the tournament championship. The team will also play in the Prospect tournament prior to Christmas break. While the rest of us are lounging around, during the holidays, our sports teams will be busy practicing and preparing for league play that begins in January. The boys’ varsity is a young team, with many sophomores earning spots on the varsity team. They will play exciting basketball as they seek to replace four starters from last year’s 19-7 team. The junior varsity team currently spor ts a 3-1 record and will look for more wins in the Santa Clara HS tournament. Led by several sophomores, the JV team is more experienced than they were a year ago and look to have a fine season. With an ample amount of potential, the Eagles basketball program has for the first time added a freshman team to compete at the interscholastic level. At press time, the squad boasts a 2-0 record with wins over Sacred Heart Prep and St. Lawrence. The growth in the
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program bodes well for future Eagle success. Girls soccer looks to move to 4-1 with a match vs Pinewood School as they prepare for West Bay Athletic League play in the new year. The always tough league has many solid soccer teams and will be a challenge for the Eagles. No matter how the season goes, it already has been a success, as Coaches Tia and Evan Barth welcomed the soccer star of 2018 into the world! Young Ashley Nicole Barth is already practicing her corner kicks! Congratulations go out to Mom and Dad, who other than some sleep shortage are doing great! Wrestling got underway with their first match held on December 18 with results not available prior to press time. The team will look to improve upon their second place league finish of the past two years. In fact it is wor thy of noting that had current rule changes taken place two years ago, the Eagles would have been crowned champions of their league. The team has grown to 28 wrestlers, by far the largest ever, and they will compete in the El Camino division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League (SCVAL) as well as in several tournaments throughout the course of the season. Look for results in next month’s newsletter. The Eagle athletes and coaches hope you all enjoy a safe and happy holiday season! —Jack Bither, US Athletic Director Harker News — January 04
BEHIND
the scenes
Busy Harker Tech Staff Keeps School Connected A student saving a file from the internet to her personal folder. A teacher showcasing a digital video from his Web site. A parent faxing a health form to the nurse. The earth spinning around the sun. These phenomena and more are only a
miscellaneous tech support activities. Currently the group is working on expanding and upgrading the student wireless network, researching the latest technology to keep Harker on the leading edge, implementing new
“We really use a wide variety of technologies in many different ways… and it’s rewarding to see the fruits of our labor improve instruction, learning and daily life.” part of the responsibilities of the eight hardworking employees of the Harker Tech Department! Serving the needs of a school located in the heart of the technology capital of the nation, and with over 600 students, faculty, and staff connected to the network at a time, co-network managers Andrew Hansen and Jeffrey Niederauer have their work cut out for them.
Niederauer, a Harker alumni of the class of ’93 and a full-time employee since 1998, describes the Tech team: “We’re constantly working to keep our servers and infrastructure at a high enough quality to support all of the new and exciting projects, including the recent increase of video projects. Additionally we’re looking at ways to enhance school communication with parents and students through database driven Web sites and
While the department is based on the Saratoga campus, the busy staff provides on-site tech support at both campuses. For instance, Kevin Mason works in the business office, and user support technician Gary Hinrich takes care of the dayto-day issues at the Bucknall campus. Lead technician Jesse Lara says, “In addition to a computer for every teacher, we manage eight computer labs on both campuses, and a growing wireless network that covers the library over at our lower school campus and a large percentage of our upper school campus.” Lara works along with system administrator Mark LoCaccio and PC technician Brian Wimsett. Ben Lee, Harker alumni of the Class of ’94, is the department’s administrative assistant who processes the purchasing of technology items for the school and keeps track of all tech equipment. “It’s quite interesting to walk around campus and see my old teachers, some of whom I still don’t feel comfortable calling by their first names,” laughed Lee. Network co-manager Hansen, a Harker employee since 1994,
works with Niederauer on network issues and also oversees wiring, new installations and upgrades. Hansen, who also worked several years in the dorm, in the summer program and as a coach, has a broad overview of the school’s needs and enjoys working at Harker. “The people and environment are supportive, caring and appreciative.” Niederauer agrees. “We really use a wide variety of technologies in many different ways, so there is always something new to learn, and it’s rewarding to see the fruits of our labor improve instruction, learning and daily life. Because technology is a high priority with the school, we have a support department to maintain all of the great stuff we have,” he said. “I’m not aware of any other local school environments that are as comprehensive and well-rounded!” Many thanks to this friendly group of people who keep our school connected and on the leading edge of technology! —Julia Gitis, Class of ’03 Current Freshman at UC Berkeley
Mark Tantrum: all photos
Covering both the Saratoga and Bucknall campuses, the department averages about 25-30 service requests a day. There is no such thing as a “typical” day for the Tech team. Functions of the department include user support for all faculty and staff, server implementation and administration, phone/fax support, student wireless network maintenance, update and upkeep of user accounts, and multifarious
network security, storage, and content filtering software, and working with parent and community donors to obtain new technology for student use.
other distribution facilities.”
Harker News — January 04
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ALUMNI
update
New Web Site is Helping Alumni Connect! The recent alumni postcard mailing announcing our new alumni Web site prompted lots of alumni to register, and it’s such fun to read about all the classmates who are still connected with each other. Often I have two people each asking to get in touch with the other in the same week! I’ve noticed that many of the names mentioned of classmates in contact with classmates aren’t registered on the Web site, so please encourage the alumni you’re in contact with to register. This will be so helpful at reunion time for your class. Many alumni attended this year’s family picnic in October and enjoyed visiting with former classmates and former teachers. It was very special to meet Richard Rackerby from the class of ’67 at PAMA. He and his wife made the trip from Santa Rosa to check out what Harker is all about now. They toured the campus and enjoyed the many PAMA photos on display in the alumni area. Rackerby was able to identify many of the faces for me, and he also got a chance to visit with Howard Nichols and reminisce about friends from their PAMA days. The alumni Italian Sausage Sandwich booth was once again staffed by Keil Albert and Liz Robertson, both class of ’82 and married to each other. They spent hours wrapping and selling sandwiches – many thanks to them both! Thanks also goes to Matt Walsh, ’97, who helped cook sausages along with our alumni dad and booth sponsor Dan Zanotto and alumni dad and teacher Pat Walsh. Also, this years’ alumni raffle winners were Sam Stapleton, ’89, and Christine Johnson, ’95, who each received gift bags with lots of Harker logo items. The alumni booth and alumni area are the best spots to be at the picnic — I look forward to getting more of you involved next year!
Terry Walsh, Director of Alumni Programs 408.345.9205 • terryw@harker.org • www.harker.org
PA Jeff Carnes checks in from Sun Valley, ID where he is fire chief. He wants to be kept informed if there are any PAMA reunions.
called “Fall In!” If you are interested in getting in touch with Steve, contact the alumni office for more information.
PA Steve Tolen writes from Quincy, CA where he is a paramedic and an instructor of emergency medical care. His memories include: “Gene Renaghan, who showed me the beauty of Plumas County by giving me my first job at his summer camp; Trevor Morgan, for teaching me the value of great literature; and Larry Torcellini, for leading by example and building character.” He is still in contact with former classmate Bill Thompson.
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PA Steve Worsley sends word from San Francisco. His memories include teacher Lawrence E. Hatch and classmate PFC Theodore Lincoln. He would like to get in touch with classmates from the years 1968 to 1972 and wants to start a site
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HA John Smutny is currently a customer service rep and lives in Moorpark, CA. John wrote, “My fondest memories are of the wonder ful teachers that I learned so much from and the friends that I made.” He said the teachers he remembers most are Mrs. Offerman, Mrs. Anderson, Mrs. Mann, Ms. Olsen (now Nichols), Mrs. Harris, Col. Tuttle, Mrs. Feldman (now Paris), Mrs. Drotar, Mr. Estill, Coach Oddo, Coach Gelineau, Mrs. Carley and Victoria the Life Guard. He also remembers friends Ken Hunt, Kevin Cracraft, the Bagliettos, Christopher Conlin, John Marlow, Eryth Zecker, Kathy Cornell, Joylyn Belli, John Flynn and Julie Lucas. “My experiences at Harker gave me an appreciation and joy for learning and helped me become who I am.” He would like to hear from Ken Hunt, Kathy Cornell, Kevin Cracraft and the Bagliettos.
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HA Lisa Anne Kahn received her BS from Menlo college and is currently a senior credit analyst living in Los Altos. HA Ken Hunt received his BA, Law Degree and MBA all from Wake Forest University and is currently a CEO in Seattle. HA Steve Jorgensen sends word from Carlsbad, CA. He is in contact with Andrew Ho and Alan Siegwarth and would love to hear from any classmates from 1981.
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MN Manzanita Hall 1893-1919 MH Miss Harker School 1904-1959 PA
Palo Alto Military Academy 1919-1972
HD Harker Day School 1959-1972 HA Harker Academy 1973-1992 HS The Harker School 1993-Present
Paul Krueger received his BS from the U.S. Military Academy – West Point and his MBA from UC Davis. He is currently a senior product marketing manager in Irvine, CA. He writes, “The short experience as a cadet in 4th and 5th grade heavily influenced my decision to attend West Point and become an army officer. The Harker education and preparation helped me succeed at WP.” HA Leigh Harrison received her BA in sociology from UC Santa Barbara. She is currently working in marketing in Los Angeles and is in contact with classmate Julie Doll McFate.
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HA Michelle Magboo Hunter received her BA in literature from St. Mary’s College and is currently a sales director living in San Francisco. HA Brett Riesenhuber is owner of Prime Physique Fitness Specialists and involved in commercial and residential real estate. He said he has also been involved with wakeboarding and the wine business. He would like to hear from classmates of ’83.
HA Paul Beirne received his BS from Santa Clara University and his MBA from New York University. He is currently working in investment management and lives in New York City.
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HA Mike Archer e-mailed the alumni office to say how much he enjoyed the photos on our Web site. (The plan is to change the photos periodically, so keep checking in with us!) HA Eric Bringhurst received his BS from UC Davis and his MD from Medical College of Virginia. He is currently an anesthesiologist in Fremont. He writes, “I have fond memories of math with Col. Tuttle and biology with Diana Olsen (now Nichols). He has had some contact with Dave Gronner and Henrik Mann.
HARKER HISTORICAL LEGEND
HA Valerie Tierney is living in Monte Sereno and is currently working in accounting. HA Jeffrey Mar received his BS from Santa Clara University and his Masters from USC. He is currently living in Los Altos and works in real estate investment and development. He remembers favorite teachers, Mr. Near and Mr. Foster. “The school did a good job of preparing me for high school and college. The curriculum and after-school
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Diane Chang ’02 is featured on the cover of the University of Pennsylvania Fall ‘03 recreation brochure.
HA Lyle Stewart checks in from San Francisco. He is currently in administration with the University of California.
Harker News — January 04
ALUMNI
update
activities provided for a well rounded education,” said Mar. He is in touch with Allen Liao, Peter Mooseman, Karri Sakai, Matt Baker, Steven Low and David Wang (get these classmates to register!). He wonders what Liz Lappin and Sun Hyup Kim are up to.
NEWS & REUNIONS
ALUMNI
CONTACT US
HOME
Designed to promote communication with Harker alumni, we hope you will take the time soon to visit www.harkeralumni.org and: • Build a personal profile • Update your records • Read about alumni events • Search for friends by class year • Browse through old and new photos In the months ahead we’ll continue to update the site and add new features and information. Your feedback is important to us, so let us know how you like this new Harker alumni site and how it might serve you better.
Stay in touch – check it out today! www.harkeralumni.org Leanne Lin and Josh Oshinsky. HA John Owens sent an e-mail to let us know he is a federal prosecutor in Los Angeles. HA Andrea Cu checks in from Los Altos. She is in contact with Ben Jennings, Doug Quan, Tiffany Kitamura and Johnny Koo. At some point they would like to have a reunion. (You will be due for a 20 year pretty soon!)
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HA Leah McCowan Minnery is not only an alumni, she is now teaching MS PE at Harker! Leah said, “I am so grateful and excited to be back A group of alumni gathered recently for the first Alumni on campus as an Program planning meeting with Terry Walsh, alumni educator. I hope programs director, and Joe Rosenthal, executive director of to make a positive advancement, to offer suggestions of ways to get alumni and lasting involved and discuss plans for future alumni events. impression on my Pictured L to R: Keil Albert (’82), Liz Robertson (’82), Tina students as my Johnson Murray (’82), Liz Williams (’92), Chris Yamashita (’90), Kristen Scarpace Giammona (’81), Rosenthal, Matt former teachers Sampson (’93) and Matt Van Dyke (’93). did with me.” She also mentioned extracurricular activities to that Harker taught her to study learning to become leaders. I feel efficiently and effectively, and that Harker helped open doors to our the school fostered an environment future and it is something I hope I that promoted self-confidence and will be able to pass on to my trust. “It challenged me more than daughter by her attending Harker, any other educational institution. too.” Miyeko is in contact with Harker encouraged athletics and
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Terry Walsh
GIVING
Harker’s new alumni Web site is now up and running at www.harkeralumni.org!
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Harker News — January 04
REGISTER
New! Check it out!
HA Allen Liao writes from Morgan Hill. He is currently a sales manager in San Francisco and is in touch with Jeff Mar, Steven Low, Karri Sakai, David Wang and Leo Shih. He would like to hear from William Ma, Sun-Hyup Kim, Paul Hopkins, ’83, and Jackson Tam, ’83. HA Dawn Miyeko Yoneda Kohlmann received her BA and teaching credential from University of the Pacific and her MA in education administration from Santa Clara University. Miyeko said, “I spent eight years at Harker and have many great memories of friends - some turned out to be lifelong friends - and teachers. I also have fond memories of our 8th grade Yosemite trip, the HASL trip to Disneyland, and the field trip to the Exploratorium in 3rd grade. Harker was a big part of my life as I was growing up. I received a great well-rounded education. I spent several years teaching elementary school after graduating from college, and from that experience I realize how much Harker offered us in all aspects of schooling, from strong academics, a separate physical education program, diverse
DIRECTORY
fitness, and I believe it is one of the major reasons why I went into PE as an undergrad,” she added. Leah is in contact with Allison Oshinsky, Laila Danesh, Jason Robinson, ‘84, Alicia Hirsh and of course her brother Matt McCowan, ’84. HA Jennifer Booth Lento received her BS from Santa Clara University and her MS and Ph.D. from UC San Diego School of Medicine. She is currently a clinical psychologist and a university faculty member. She would like to hear about Tracy Pruitt, Danielle Duran and Nancy Majors.
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HA Jason Cox writes from Bakersfield where he is a business owner. Jason said, “My favorite people were everyone in the dorms, especially Joe Rosenthal, Ron Maloney and Lisa Hackwood! Attending Harker has benefited me in every aspect of life both socially and educationally.”
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the trips to Yosemite and Washington D.C. and he is in contact with Raymond Chang. HA Douglas Eastman, IV received his BS in mechanical engineering from UC Berkeley and is currently attending MIT.
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HS Thomas Neeley checks in from Hanover, NH.
HS Peter Liu checks in from Woodinville, WA. HS Christina Johnston received her BA in business economics from UC Santa Barbara. She is currently taking some time off before returning to graduate school to pursue a Masters in nutrition. This past summer she and classmate Kate Stober traveled to New
HA Kristie Welch received her BA in English literature from Santa Clara University. She is currently a special education English and reading teacher in San Jose. HS Christopher Huang received his BA in international studies from UC Irvine. He is currently an assistant property manager living in Los Altos. His memories include
’94
Jessica Gaffney, Kate Stober and Christina Johnston pictured on their travels abroad.
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HS Yasemin Denari is currently a student at UCLA. She said, “Harker was a wonderful experience! Going to school at Harker definitely taught me a good work ethic.” She is in contact with Erica Hahn.
’96
HS Jordan Braun checks in from Santa Cruz where he is a student at UC Santa Cruz. He is working as a barista at a coffee shop.
’97
HS MS Danny Yoo is currently attending Phillips Exeter Academy. “Senior fall term here at Exeter has been both exciting and tough. In addition to keeping up with the academics, I have responsibilities (which I love) as the class president,” wrote Yoo. “It’s been four years since my graduation at Harker, though I often think back on the wonderful time I had and the precious friendships that I made within the Harker community. The academic and personal base that Harker gave me has been so helpful to me all these years,” he added. The alumni office did a bit of checking and Yoo was recently featured in the Exeonion, the school newspaper. One of his teachers, Mr. Hertig, is quoted as saying, “I always find it remarkable that someone can come from a foreign country and manage to become a leader in a society that he did not grow up in. He’s a modest kid, as far as I can tell, and a very impressive student and person.”
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Alumni Fun at Fashion Show! Get together with your classmates at the fashion show - buy a table for the lunch or dinner and have a mini-reunion with your buddies!
Fashion Show details on pages 8 & 9 or call the alumni office to organize!
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Dec. 19 - Alumni Home for the Holidays Event US alumni classes of ’02 and ‘03 gathered at Harker on the last day of school before Winter Break for the 2nd annual Home for the Holidays College Reception. Over 100 alumni, faculty and current students enthusiastically gathered to laugh, hug and catch up. Some of our alumni were still finishing finals and rushing to airports across the country to get home for the holidays, but know you were in all of our hearts and we hope you’ll drop by the week of Jan. 5 if you’re still around! Best wishes to all our alumni for a relaxing vacation and a fabulous new year!
Lee Trotter: all photos
Zealand. During their stay they met up with classmate Jessica Gaffney, who is studying at the University of Lincoln in Christchurch.
update
Alumni Share Fond Memories of Harker French Classes Recently three Harker alumni assisted French teacher Carol Parris with a presentation to the Gr. 6 students about Harker’s French program. Current Harker teacher, Kristin Scarpace Giammona, ’81, sent photos of herself in her grandmother’s wedding dress to be shown at the presentation. “Kristen was the first bride at one of my French wedding extravaganzas,” laughed Parris, who added that another alumni teacher, Elise Tremba Schwartz, ’84, dressed up in her old Harker uniform and did the middle school portion of the presentation. “We added a beret and she looked adorable!” Rick Hayashi, ’02, sent a letter with
some comments about his experience with French at Harker. “I am still able to use the knowledge that I gained in French classes to help me through my philosophy and history classes,” he wrote. “I had never imagined that the words I learned from the 6th grade would still be ingrained in my head almost seven years later.” Hayashi went on to say that the immersion activities in his Harker French class, such as par ties, field trips and movies made his middle school experience “pricelessly thrilling and educational.” Harker Archives
ALUMNI
“It was great for me to reconnect with these former students and get so much help and support with this presentation,” added Parris. Harker News — January 04
ALUMNI
update
College Updates from Our Newest Alumni
’03
The alumni office sent an e-mail to our recent graduating Class of 2003 asking for some thoughts on college life and words of advice for our current seniors. Here’s what we had received at press time – thanks to all who responded and shared your insights. We miss you all, too!
Julia Gitis: UC Berkeley “The thing about college is that the way you spend your time is completely up to you. It puts your life in your own hands. So all those ‘who am I and what do I want from life’ questions come up. Some of us have a strong sense of direction by now, and some are still exploring. It took me a while to settle into college life, and I still don’t feel completely adjusted. I do miss Harker— the groovy dynamic of our class, how special our senior year was, all our wonderful teachers. But reminiscing is bittersweet, so let’s look forward to staying in touch and sharing our experiences with one another. Go Bears! (and Go Eagles!)” Sable Yeh: George Washington University, Elliot School of Int’l Affairs “The biggest adjustment was the whole East coast vs. West coast attitude and lifestyle. College really forces you to get out of your element and develop some life skills, like learning to take care of yourself, managing time and money and your own personal space, etc. I would advise students to VISIT VISIT VISIT! Visit as often as you can, stay overnight, get into the city on your own, wander around the campus on your own...don’t just rely on university guides, etc. Find out about the availability of classes and accessibility of teachers, helpfulness of administration...also check to see if they’ve got good academic advising programs and resources.” Michael Vu: University of Pennsylvania “College is going great! I am currently a bio major with a minor in film. The best part of college is that I have my dream job—getting paid to review movies. If I were to give advice to any of the Harker kids, it would be to enjoy your time in high school. Don’t waste time standing around complaining about how bad you think everything is. Enjoy high school for what it is, because once you’re in college it’s all gone forever.” Catherine Kim: Yale “What do I love about college? Independence. And I’ve started fencing here, and I love it. On advice for seniors, “You’ll be happy almost anywhere you end up if you make an effort and try to find stuff to do there. I’m not at my first choice, but it’s awesome here.” Misha Nasledov: UC Santa Cruz “I think the most difficult adjustment was having to do a lot more work. I love being away from my parents and having friends around me all the time. I love the feeling of independence; detentions aren’t given out if you don’t do your work and it feels a lot worse when you don’t do your work because of this. It’s not your teachers that should punish you for this, but your mind and sense of accomplishment. Tyranny does not make for a good education!! I’m very glad I made the choice of UC Santa Cruz, as the people and environment are right for me.” Christiana Rattazzi: Emory University “Well, I was lucky enough to get a single, so I don’t have a roommate. However, the first few days here, that presented a problem because I didn’t have that “automatic friend” and I was spending my days moving in with my mom’s help. However, as soon as she left, I began to socialize and quickly made friends. I love the independence and dorm life, being able to live around your friends. As tough as it may seem, realize it is ALL worth it. College is so amazingly different that your hard work definitely pays off. In choosing a college, a lot of it is about initial feel. However, it’s important not to have any prejudices because you really never know.” Shabnam Aggarwal: Carnegie Mellon University “Hmmm...college life! Well, first, it’s awesome. For me, it’s not exactly what I had imagined it to be, but it’s not worse or better, just different. I think it took me about two months to completely settle in to college, Harker News — January 04
probably because I’m so far from home and because of the drastic weather change. My advice, to anyone who’s planning on college on the East Coast, is soak up all the California sun you can, because it’s very different on the East coast. What do I miss most? I’d have to say sports. You never realize how much fun it is to have the opportunity to play any sport you want in high school, because when you get to college, unless you’re Rebecca Chang, you’ll almost never get that opportunity again. I surprisingly miss my teachers a lot, as well. It’s always good to stay in touch, teachers give valuable advice. I love meeting new people in college, and being able to really express yourself, through joining clubs with people you identify with, and being able to expand your horizons to whatever your heart desires. I miss everyone at Harker, please send them my regards!” Kunal Kothari: UCLA “College adjustment was pretty easy and a lot of fun, but you’ll come to miss close interactions with some of the greatest teachers. When you get to college, make sure you get involved with all the welcome week events and floor events. Don’t be afraid to try new things.” Brendan Boland: UC Davis “In general it took me several weeks to really feel comfortable in the room and make it my own. It’s been really hard adjusting to my roommate because he is so different from me - introverted, quiet, and he stays up typing on his computer till one in the morning most weeknights, when I like to go to bed on average around 10:30. There are a lot of things I miss about Harker, some of them being: a small
“College really forces you to get out of your element and develop some life skills, like learning to take care of yourself, managing time and money and your own personal space, etc.” —Sable Yeh community, peers who want to learn and are interested in at least some aspect of what they are learning (or pretend to be), and teachers who care. In addition to that I, of course, miss my friends. After going through elementary, junior high and then high school you just get used to going to school from 8 in the morning to three in the afternoon, and all of a sudden you’re going to class three or four days a week and at crazy times – it’s a blessing and a curse. If you like what you’re getting from the Harker experience, then pick a small private school. I loved Harker and became accustomed to what they offered students, and then I went to UC Davis that has an undergraduate student count of around 30,000, so offering the same sort of personal attention is impossible. When you go, make sure you get a good vibe from the surroundings. It helps to choose the place based on your gut feelings, not on the reputation of the institution. Kristin Kaiser: Montana State University “It didn’t take very long to get settled in for me. Everyone is a little shy, but very friendly and willing to make friends. The biggest adjustment was being so far from home, but it was nice having other relatives not too far away. I missed my friends at home and the routine weekend activities with them, but you find new things to do every Friday night and there is a lot more to do on campus and in college in general. My biggest suggestion is go to a school that provides a wide spectrum of really good programs. Don’t focus so much on a school that is extremely specialized, unless you have taken a workshop or class there and know you like it, because if you change your mind, which is likely, then you might have to transfer. The food is awesome at Montana State University and if anyone is interested in architecture they are more than welcome to e-mail me!”
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FROM
the archives classes and performing arts groups sing at convalescent homes and hospitals in the area (see this year’s per formance update on page 6) and Harker continues to participate in the annual Jump Rope for Heart event, raising thousands of dollars each year for the American Heart Association.
“Non-Ministrari, Sed Ministrari” To Serve, Not to be Served— A History of Harker’s Community Service Harker’s commitment to service dates back to the earliest years in Harker’s history. Catherine Harker, founder and headmistress of the Miss Harker School for Girls from 1893 to 1938, described the three-fold aims of the school: ■ To inspire every girl with high ideals, not only of scholarship but of character ■ To develop sound and healthy bodies and to foster grace and poise
City Trees 1997
Food Drive 1991
■ To develop a high level of scholarship.
Being involved in the community and assisting those less for tunate helps our students become compassionate, caring young adults. “NonMinistrari, Sed Ministrari!”
The school’s motto, “Non-ministrari, sed ministrari” (Not to be served, but to ser ve) grew from the first objective. The school founders believed that each Harker student must develop a sense of personal responsibility, “so that, by entering into the welfare of other lives with sympathy and helpfulness, she will become a power for good in her home and in the community in which she lives.” (1928-29 school catalog) Over the years both Catherine and her sister Sara ensured that the girls of The Miss Harker School worked for those in need, raising money for many charities including the Stanford Home for Convalescent Children in 1923, the Red Cross Children’s Relief Fund in 1942, and the World Ser vice Student Fund in 1946. The Archives contains a letter to Miss Sara from Douglas MacArthur dated July 9, 1948, thanking the school for a clothing drive held for needy children of leper parents in Japan. Upon her death in 1956, Sara was widely recognized for her humanitarian and philanthropic contributions, a legacy that has remained throughout Harker’s history. Students of the Harker Academy had a reputation for service, including an award in 1978 for their involvement in the March of Dimes Walkathon. In recent years teachers and students have loaded up Harker vans with canned goods and personally delivered them to the Loaves and Fishes kitchen in downtown San Jose. Students have gone shopping with collected money to see how many turkeys they could buy, bought clothes and presents for families in need, collected toys for the U.S. Marine’s toy drive each year and planted trees for the City Trees Marine’s Marine’s Toy Toy Drive Drive 1987 1987 Project. Individual
The Harker News is published nine times per year by the Harker Office of Communications. Current and archived issues are also available on the Parent Home Page on the Harker Web site at www.harker.org. Editor: Pam Dickinson Asst. Editor: Terry Walsh Photographer: Mark Tantrum Additional photos: Chris Daren & Talon Staff; Yasmin Ali (’02)
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Design: Blue Heron Design Printing & Mailing: Communicart Mailing Coordinator: Bran-Dee Torres Contributors: Crystal Boyd, Laura Vandendries, Bill Bost & Elizabeth Orr
—Sue Smith, archivist
LAST MONTH’S ARCHIVE TRIVIA CONTEST WINNERS! Congratulations to Naomi So, Gr. 5, and Clare Elchert, Saratoga campus nurse, who were the first student and staff member to send in the correct answers to the Halloween archive trivia questions in last month’s column. Naomi received a small stuffed bear in a Harker shirt and a mechanical pencil. Clare received a coffee mug. The correct answers: Archive # 1 Beauty Queens – Lisa Hackwood, Kim Coulter, Kelly Espinosa, Mel Robinson and Mel McKenna; Archive #2 Bruised Brothers – Howard Saltzman, Pat Walsh and Jack Bither.
NATIONAL FRENCH WEEK ANSWERS (SEE PG. 15): 1. Rémi – also Hergé; 2. Léopold Senghor; 3. Savarin; Brillat-Savarin; 4. Daniel Bernouilli Gargantua; François Rabelais
NEXT
month ■ Updates on Summer Camp and Summer Institute offerings for 2004 — what's new and what’s hot! ■ Report on the 10-day visit in January of MS math teacher Ryotaro Kishi who is this year's exchange teacher from Tamagawa.
The Harker School is a K-12 independent, co-ed, college-prep school.
Grades K-6: 4600 Bucknall Rd., San Jose CA 95130 Phone 408.871.4600 • Fax 408.871.4320 Grades 7-12: 500 Saratoga Ave., San Jose CA 95129 Phone 408.249.2510 • Fax 408.984.2325
The Harker School does not discriminate in the administration of its educational policies, athletics or other school-administered programs, or in the administration of its hiring and employment practices on the basis of age, sex, race, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation or nonjob-related handicap.
Harker News — January 04