![NEW CHALLENGE, NEW TEAM MEMBERS: Every season, VEX creates a new game that robotics team members are faced with and have to build a robot to compete in. This year’s game forces students to create a robot that is able to stack rings onto mobile goals in order to score points. The change in games each season is something that robotics teacher Audrea Moyers appreciates.
“One of the things that I like about VEX is that they have a new problem to solve every year,” she said. ¨Even though the equipment’s the same, they have to analyze the game, and they have to come up with solutions that are unique that year. They are using their knowledge from prior years, but they have to kind of redesign a problem.”
As returning teams were faced a new game, some new teams and members had to adapt to a uncommon playing field and game.
“Three of our four teams were competing for the first time this year, and they had very different experiences match to match, so I think they learned a lot,¨ she said. ¨It’s hard just watching a video online to know how it’s actually going to be in person, so they all learned a lot about what gameplay is like, how to work with an alliance partner [and] how to adapt during the day to changes.”](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/IMG_9283-1-1200x800.jpg)
Culture Week kicked off with a sidewalk chalk activity on Monday in the Orchard. Take a look at how students expressed their identities through art, and stay tuned for more Culture Week coverage!
Lily Shi, News Editor: The annual Culture Week kicked off with a sidewalk chalk activity on Monday in the Orchard. Throughout the day, students used chalk to draw what inspires them and what they identify with, transforming the pavement into a canvas of expression.
Ankita Chakravarty (11): I first drew Remy the Rat from “Ratatouille,” and then I tried to draw a peacock. I just think they’re fun and silly, and I think that kind of represents a little bit of my personality because I just like doing goofy things.
Lily: Student Diversity Coalition, which organized the event, hopes to invite students to create a space that represents the community.
Arushi Sahasi (11): This is basically a means to express who you are as a student. It’ll go from the end of this walkway here to the other end, and we just get a beautiful mosaic of identity. It’s a really great opportunity to get to know each other. Our Harker community is so small, and there are so many unique individuals that it would be a shame to not highlight our own uniqueness. Just walking past and walking through these drawings can give us a better sense of who we have among us in this community.
Lily: Culture Week continues with events on Wednesday and Friday, including lunchtime Culture Booths and the annual Culture Week Assembly. Stay tuned for our coverage.
Additional reporting by Eva Cheng.
This story was originally published on Harker Aquila on February 24, 2025.