On September 10. 2014, a meeting was held in West High School’s ASB chambers to discuss creating new clubs this year. The amount of clubs West has to offer provides students with many diverse options, but these new additions tend to put pressure on the staff and students in ASB.

When asked about West High’s number of clubs, Kevin Kim (12), the Secretary of ICC, agreed, “The fact that there are so many clubs makes it hard to manage our time and effort into making sure that every club gets equal attention.” The sheer number is staggering and difficult to handle for student affairs, not to mention that many of the recent clubs are being created specifically to fluff college applications.

Regardless of the number of existing clubs, all must suit a specific purpose and pay their dues to West High’s students. “If clubs are too similar, they don’t get approved,” said Ms. Eriksen, the Student Actvities Director. “We have a martial arts club, so if you wanted to start a Judo club, then we wouldn’t approve it.”

However, Eriksen did remark that she thought the wide variety of clubs was beneficial for the students. Ms. Sledge, the Japanese teacher, shared this opinion, saying, “It means that every person in each niche can feel like they belong.” In addition, the freshmen seem to view the diversity as an advantage as well. “If they’re very specific, then it might be good,” Margerite Nunez (9) commented.

From the ASB staff to the freshmen, everyone seems to agree that the key to a club’s success is in its originality and fulfillment of its goal, whether that be education, volunteer work, or simply just making friends. Generally, management can be a bit chaotic, and sponsorship is difficult to find, but the actual development of new clubs is accepted just as any other school function is.

For anyone planning on starting a new club, the forms will be due at the ICC meeting next week. In addition, previous club heads should also attend this meeting for further information about the upcoming year.