for a special evening of inspiring words and lifelong memories. Valedictorian Anika Mohindra remarked, “I’m going to remember the things I loved doing and the people I loved spending time with – you. I hope you do too.” Keynote speaker Priscilla Chan, co-chair of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, said, “Focus yourself on the change that you want to see in the world. Take on what’s most interesting to you. Take lots of risks. Ask for help. Believe in yourself and ask others to take a bet on you.”
.Student wins gold medal in U.S. Physics Olympiad, five others finish strong May 31, 2016 http://wp.me/pOeLQ-7Dh Swapnil Garg, grade 10, won a gold medal in this year’s U.S. Physics Olympiad, sponsored by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). Although he did not make the team that will participate in this year’s International Physics Olympiad, Garg was one of only 35 students (out of about 400 who qualified to take the USA Physics Olympiad Exam) to earn a gold medal. Peter Wu and David Zhu, both grade 11, received silver medals in the contest, while sophomore Jimmy Lin and seniors Jonathan Ma and Michael Zhao received honorable mentions.
............................................................... 13 Harker seniors receive National Merit scholarships June 9, 2016 http://wp.me/pOeLQ-7AU
Head of School Chris Nikoloff encouraged the graduates to “drop any concept you have about who you should be in the future,” and to make plans and set goals, “but just don’t get too attached to them. Use them, but do not let them use you.” Nikoloff added that students’ contributions to the world will be revealed to them as they continue their journey through life. “You are taking and making your life as you go, and who knows what ripples throughout eternity you will create?” he said.
Harker had 13 winners of $2,500 National Merit scholarships in 2016 out of more than 15,000 finalists nationwide. Winners, all 2016 graduates, were Vivek Bharadwaj, Jonathan Dai, Victoria Ding, Stephanie Huang, Joshua Hung, Vineet Kosaraju, Evan Lohn, Anika Mohindra, Emily Pan, Karen Qi, Allison Wang, Esther Wang and Michael Zhao. More than 1.5 million high school students were entered into this year’s National Merit Scholarship Program after taking Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Tests. Fewer than 1 percent of these students went on to the semifinal round of the competition, and only 15,000 of those were named finalists.
Senior named regional finalist in Google Science Fair for eye diagnostic app Aug. 11, 2016 http://wp.me/pOeLQ-7HK Senior Rishab Gargeya was named a regional finalist in the international Google Science Fair 2016. Thousands of participants from more than 100 countries entered their projects in the competition. Gargeya’s project is one of only 100 finalists selected from around the globe. It is currently one of the top 50 projects in the 1618 age category identified as having the potential to change the world. The project summary notes, “This study develops a novel smartphonebased diagnostic tool that can automatically detect any retinal abnormality within seconds. Through the use of a low-cost external ophthalmic lens attachment, individuals can diagnose themselves with their smartphones at any time, allowing them to seek medical attention accordingly to prevent any potential vision complications.”
H AR KE R MAG A Z INE l FALL/WIN TER 2016
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