Features

Filling up free time

McIntosh gains new clubs on campus for student participation

Celine Jean, Staff

Nov 14, 2023

Graphic Illustration via Canva by Rebekah Bushmire and Celine Jean

Students and teachers are encouraged to start clubs based on their academic and extracurricular interests. This school year, many students came together to start brainstorming ideas on how they could start their own club and bring like-minded people together.

Junior Camilla O’Connell (Rebekah Bushmire)

For junior Camilla O’Connell, her interest in crochet was sparked during quarantine. With the help of english teacher Anna Harbison, she was able to get a sponsor for her club and build new skills.

“Over Covid I tried to learn how to crochet but it always ended up being a mess. So, I figured that I should create an opportunity to have someone sit down and teach me how to correctly. I wanted someone to hold me accountable of my progress,” O’Connell said.

O’Connell creates a positive environment so that students feel comfortable to learn.

“When you have a good mindset and environment, you are able to enjoy the people around you and learn together,” O’Connell said.

For business minded students, the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) Club builds business skills and nurtures the idea of healthy competition in everyday life. Originally started by Coach Beall, The FBLA Club has had a successful start up.

“We learn everything like digital arts, computer design and web design to help us investigate,” senior FBLA leader Jacob Harris said.

The goal of the FBLA club is to increase students’ ability to understand more about majoring in business and prepare them for their possible future in the career path Competitions in the FBLA community are a very broad range. So much so that 4,000 schools are currently competing and involved in this organization.

“We do not only focus on competitive aspects of business, there is a very broad range. We cover different topics at every club meeting,” Harris said.

Black Student Union (BSU) is an inclusive club for students. Senior Oluchi Ugbajah, president, wanted to build a space for students.

“I wanted to form a community where we, [black students], weren’t scarce and had a bigger environment to be ourselves in,” Ugbajah said.

There are a variety of different clubs to join or even start as a MHS student. Every club is highly inclusive and always ready to have another member join.

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About the Contributor

Celine Jean, Staff

Celine Jean is a junior serving in her first year as a staff member at the McIntosh Trail. Her passion for reading and writing had been ignited since elementary school when Jean was a part of the Poetry Club. In middle school, Jean’s interest in short stories and political ideologies took an intensive path after two years of participating in the Yale Splash program in Connecticut. Ever since 2021, Jean has volunteered with People of Impact and the Haitian American Caucus to assist the underserved community. Her involvement commenced with serving at soup kitchens and joining park cleaning events in urban and neglected areas in New York. Soon, Jean began to organize volunteering and fundraising events for domestic violence and family shelters. Jean joined God’s Love We Deliver, a non-profit that focuses on feeding hospice cancer and AIDS patients on holidays. In 9th grade, during a socially and politically sensitive climate, Jean became a founding leader of Uncommon Ground, a student group that partners with administration to learn concerns and bridge the gap of the BIPOC students. During her sophomore year at McIntosh, Jean joined the Parent Teacher Student Organization (PTSO), the Debate Team and the Spanish Club. Celine is excited about embarking on this new journey as an official staff member of the McIntosh Trail.