Sommer’s Salt

By Sommer Fowler (Special Columnist)

Officially, there are about 70 clubs that exist on campus. Each club has at least one advisor, assigned meeting space and president. There is not a single weekday without multiple club meetings happening during lunch. Club officers harass their innocent Facebook friends to attend copious fundraising events at just about every possible teenager-approved eatery. Clubs at PHHS manifest student lives, but with so many available the line between valid and illegitimate blurs.

Becoming an official ASB club entails finding a willing teacher to assume the role of club advisor and donate classroom space for meetings—at least twice a month—yet only requires ten members and four officers. This allows a small group of friends to occupy a teacher’s precious time, preventing students from approaching their teacher for help. Although club advisors are not required to participate in club meetings, it is rather difficult to consult a teacher about an essay while chirpy officers are grabbing for their members’ attention and bellowing out announcements.

With such a low required count of members, a student can easily become president of their own club then do the bare minimum to maintain official status; most club officers are only looking for a shiny title to write on college applications. After the officers graduate PHHS, the club descends to the cemetery of forgotten causes. If the requirements for official clubs were tightened, it is doubtful every prospective club president would be passionate enough about their club to pursue ASB status still.

Many clubs are twins. They are nearly identical, but just different enough to distinguish after a close inspection. As a result freshmen filter potential clubs, especially with the abundance of similar community service clubs, through criteria more often than not unrelated to the club.

This is not to say PHHS should rid itself of all clubs. They are a vital component of student life and bolster friendships that a classroom never could. That being said, perhaps potential clubs seeking ASB status should be looked at more critically than in the past. Those looking to share a hobby may wish to consider gathering outside of school hours, on their own time. These conditions are suggested not to discredit smaller clubs, but rather strengthen genuine clubs that wish to positively impact PHHS.