From opportunities for socialization to college application boosters, clubs and sports are very important for students to participate in. However, scheduling conflicts, anxiety around joining new communities, and fear of failure may discourage students from branching out.

Clubs offer a student a community around an interest they may have. From the fashion club to the fishing club, all the way to the chess club, hobbies and talents may be utilized to their full potential within an environment where it is highly encouraged by those around you.

Additionally, clubs provide academic opportunities, allowing students to hold leadership positions, organize group events, and volunteer to benefit their communities. All of these look wonderful on college and job applications as well, and give participants the chance to gain real world experience working with peers and interacting with their city.

Tegan Waters, the President of National Spanish Honors Society at Wilsonville High School points out the importance of participating in clubs, stating, “Colleges are obviously looking for something that makes you unique, and they want to see what you’ve done.”

“It shows your leadership skills, organization skills, and ability to communicate with lots of people and keep an organization alive.”Clubs are not the only organizations Wilsonville students are able to join, and the different sports offered within the high school are incredibly broad, while also offering similar benefits to participating in a club.

Amina Redfield, a track and field star at Wilsonville that participates in shot put, discus, and who broke the school Javelin record, explained the benefits of sports on a young athlete, “Sports communities build friendships, while also allowing you to develop skills that you use outside of sports environments too.”

“Leadership and communication are used a ton; communication and listening to feedback from coaches helps develop good relationships, and people love that.”

While still giving students the chance to lead, sports allow the practice of strong communication, and exercise coachability and responding to constructive feedback. Functioning under high pressure and fatigue are also important skills that are grown on sports teams as well.

Despite these benefits, Wilsonville High Schools bookkeeper Wendy Stoneking reports only around 300 students participate in a sport each season, out of our 1,255 students.

This may be due to the heavy time commitment that must be given towards a given sport, along with bodily sacrifice; this opens the participants to be subject to injury and academic stress due to a lack of free time. 

Clubs are typically much more flexible, holding meetings during school hours and usually allowing students to show up whenever they want; only a few clubs have participation requirements, such as mandatory meetings, an application process, or a minimum of volunteer hours.

Senior Ben Memmott participates in and also creates clubs at Wilsonville. He not only shreds on the mountain for our snowboard team but is the vice-president and co-founder of the Jewish Student Union (JSU). The club has been having active meetings and events, wrapping up its first year

Although the process comes off as intimidating to start your very own club, Memmott claims it’s a very simple process, plus an easy way to get people with a common trait or interest together. 

It’s easy to be a part of a club when it’s run by your friends or you’re already involved, but for many it can be intimidating, maybe even fear-inducing that you won’t be the right fit or it’s not for you but Memmott has advice that is a good rule of thumb for all clubs.

Memmott says, “The name tends to intimidate people that only Jewish people are allowed in, but JSU is a club for everyone, our goal is for people to learn more about the culture and get involved, not separate.”

All students should keep that mindset when contemplating whether or not to join a club. High school clubs aren’t to divide but are a way for you to find people with common interests and pursue those interests together.

Even if it’s something unknown to you but seems appealing, that’s the point of club leaders. Those people are there to educate and help spread their hobbies to build larger united communities.

Vivian Ward, the president of the National Art Honors Society (NAHS) and co-president of Model United Nations (MUN), explains how she was encouraged to join MUN alongside one of her friends. She made quick strides in leading MUN, despite it being just her first year.

Ward notes how MUN was fitting for her interests, as she enjoys things such as politics and debate. Additionally, her enthusiasm for art inspired her to join NAHS. She explains, “You learn responsibility holding a leadership position; people, like teachers and fellow students, rely on you. 

If someone is looking to join a club, I would ask yourself, ‘What piques your interest?’ or ‘Are you interested in helping people?’ From there, you can decide what to do.”

Joining a community at Wilsonville should not be daunting to students. Grab a friend and jump into a new endeavor. Try out for the sports team, apply for the leadership position, and attend meetings. 

With only four years to participate in high school activities, build hobbies, and gain experience, students should work hard to prioritize engaging in extracurricular activities. Applications for leadership positions may seem long or vulnerable, but there is no shame in putting in an effort, and putting yourself out there.

Mr. Lunden, teacher at Wilsonville High School, expresses how he wishes he had done more during his time in school. Lunden states, “I wish I had joined more clubs during high school, and done track my senior year.”

“I had done other sports that I was good at, and thinking about joining my senior year, I was worried I wouldn’t do as well and would be behind, but looking back on it, I don’t care if I wasn’t the best. I just wish I had done it and tried.”

The benefits of getting involved with extracurriculars heavily outweigh the possible anxieties and stress that may be associated with them. Implementing yourself into your community in high school increases your personal relationship, communication, and responsibility skills, while also buffing your college and job applications.