SERVICE STARS: Annabelle Brummett ‘30, Saanvika Nichani ‘30, and Audrey Vaidya ‘30 participate in R.O.C.K.S (Ripples of Caring and Kindness in School) service club. R.O.C.K.S is one of many clubs at Greenhills aimed at helping students find their passions and give back to the community, which can be quite the task. “It was a little crazy organizing 310 kids into 18 clubs and organizing 310 kids into 18 more clubs,” said Maldonado. “But they did a good job.”

Joining a club is an essential part of the Greenhills experience. Each year many new clubs are proposed. At the same time, established clubs help students continue to explore their interests. Until this school year, middle school clubs were adult sponsored. Clubs were proposed by adults and students were invited to join. No commitment was required. Students were free to come and go.

“When Ms. Burroughs prepares for her club this year, she’s expecting a certain number of students,” said head of middle school Mayra Diaz. “The way we had it last year, people could drop in and out. Maybe she’d have four people, maybe she’d have 10 people. It was hard to prepare for that. The same thing happened with the Pickleball Club. I would set up four nets and three people would come one week and then the next week 10 people would come. That was hard to prepare for.”

The changes made this year aim to counter that problem. Students will decide where they will spend C&C before it happens. This means students are able to be marked in an attendance sheet by the club supervisor. In theory, this makes preparation easier for teachers. 

“For me, it’s not really affected how I organize and prepare,” said art teacher Nicole Burroughs. “I have heard from some of my students that it’s a bit hard for them to get into clubs. I don’t know how true that is, but I think because clubs are done in a rotation, for some students it might be harder to commit to that and then get their opportunity to go in on the pottery wheel. I think there’s some benefits to it, because it does encourage more students to participate in clubs across the board because they have to sign up for something.”

The aim of this new system is to allow for students to propose club ideas more easily. This has created many new clubs as a result.

“Now, instead of kids coming up with clubs at random times or having clubs that we’ve always had, we put together a proposal form for students to propose any club they were interested in having,” said middle school dean Bridget Maldonado. “We then also asked them to be the student leaders of it so that the faculty member is really just the adult in the room supervising, but the students are really taking ownership of what they’re going to do every day.”

This year, Diaz and Maldonado received 73 club proposals. Thirty-two club slots were available so many clubs had to be placed in the next club session which starts after winter break.

“It’s about student leadership and student choice,” said Maldonado. “They know what’s cool. Way better than I do. They know what they’ll enjoy way better than I do. It gives them a way to exercise their voice. It’s about them telling us what they want and then us doing what we can to make that happen.”

Walking club was proposed and organized through this new student centered club system. Annabel Masias ’31 is the student leader of this club along with social science teacher Ms. Lauren Yavor.

“Annabel [Masias ‘31] thought it would be great to use the last 30 minutes of the day to go for a walk outside and get some fresh air,” said Yavor. “So she asked if I would be the faculty sponsor for it, and I said yes because I also love to walk. So we all meet and go for a walk every Tuesday.”

As both a sixth grade teacher and a middle school club leader, Yavor has a unique perspective on these new changes. 

“Now, we have a bigger variety in the clubs that are happening on Tuesdays and Fridays,” said Yavor. “I like that kids get to be in two different clubs if they want to be. And I think it’s great that all students are in clubs because I think it encourages them to hang out with people that maybe they don’t see in class or maybe make new connections, especially for our 6th graders. They’re still finding their people and figuring out where they fit at Greenhills, so it’s another nice way to connect.”

While middle school clubs have gone through changes in recent years, the high school clubs have remained mostly the same throughout that time.

“I think developmentally, upper school students are in a place where they can be much more independent,” said Diaz. “You also know what you like and you’re more committed to those things. And so when you join a club, you’re doing it with a level of commitment that requires a little more maturity. In middle school, it varies.”

According to Maldonado, the key to this new club system is student leadership. Historically, adults have acted as the leader of clubs, organizing and directing activities. This year’s new club system is designed to have students as club leaders. Teachers will shift into the supervisor role.  

“For some clubs, no one was willing to be the student lead of it,” said Maldonado. “And I didn’t pick that one because the key to the success of the first round of the clubs was if there was a student that was really bought in and wanted to run it.”