JUNE 2008 (vol. 14, no. 9) est. 1893 • K-12 college prep
A
M o n t h l y
inside
N e w s l e t t e r
f r o m
t h e
Ha r k e r
S c h o o l
Artists Bring Depth and Beauty to Harker and Beyond
Head of school’s graduation address speaks to realities...3 Performing arts efforts pay off splendidly........................8-11 Unembedded journalist speaks to rapt audience.................18 Statistics tell a story about student reading..................21 Student art to be displayed at Stanford Hospital...............26 Tamagawa details bring trip to life................................28 Graduation a poignant, joyous celebration....................36-39 Supplements in this issue: Alumni, Capital Campaign, Volunteer Thanks, vacation calendar, picnic flier.
events
Saveth the date! Sun., Oct. 12, 2008 The 58th Annual Family & Alumni Picnic Blackford Campus 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. See news and more details inside!
Cindy Liu
Jessica Shen
LS Art Award
MS Art Winner
Lower school artist Cindy Liu, Gr. 5, has already been noted in Harker News (see Harker News May ’08, page 18), but the story isn’t over! In April, she won the UN’s Environment Programme 17th International Children’s Painting Competition on the Environment. Liu received an award in Washington D.C. then, traveled to New Zealand for the international award ceremony but, in between earned yet another award for a different, though similar project.
Jessica Shen Gr. 8, was named the best artist in the middle school for the second year in a row, based on all her work. Shen said her favorite medium is pencil, she would love to paint a portrait someday and plans to pursue her art development in high school.
In May, Liu was named one of only six California finalists in the Doodle 4 Google competition where K-12 students were invited to reinvent Google’s homepage logo. Liu’s drawing was, again, environmentally themed, showing eco-friendly energy generation systems, including water, solar and wind powered devices, all incorporated into the Google logo. We salute this talented young lady and will be watching for her wonderful art in the future!
“Jessica is truly talented and diligent,” said Elizabeth Saltos, art teacher. “She remains teachable in that she will take suggestions, yet, she has already developed a certain amount of style. “Jessica has her own personal vision which she strives to meet with each project. At the onset of every project she incorporates a wide scope of ideas, skills and creativity. She is an excellent craftsman and demands near perfection but she still has a sense of humor and great humility about her own talent and skill. She is very supportive of other students in the class and will help out any time she sees the need,” said Saltos.
Elizabeth Liu
Congressional Art Winner Elizabeth Liu, Gr. 11, took second place in the 2008 Congressional Art Contest. The contest was facilitated locally by Congressman Mike Honda’s office. Liu’s work, Model Study #5, earned her a gift certificate from University Arts in San Jose. Congressman Honda handed out certificates and prizes at a student appreciation reception in mid-May at Camden Community Center. This year, 34 participants from the 15th district submitted work to this congress-sponsored national event, including photography, acrylic, oil painting and charcoal. Congressman Honda’s spokesperson said, “A major thank you to all the teachers – it is through their guidance and motivation that young students are able to create such amazing work. Our participation continues to grow with the support of parents and art teachers, who motivate and encourage students to submit their work.”
Senan Ebrahim Named Harker’s Second Presidential Scholar For nearly 45 years, the U.S. Department of Education’s Presidential Scholars program has chosen one young man and one young woman from each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico to be named Presidential Scholars. An additional few are chosen from
U.S. families living abroad, and 15 students are chosen at large. Twenty more students are named Presidential Scholars in the Arts. According to the program’s press release, “A 29-member Commission on Presidential Scholars appointed by President Bush
selected the Scholars based on their academic success, artistic excellence, essays, school evaluations and transcripts, as well as evidence of community service, leadership and demonstrated commitment to high ideals.” Continued on page 33