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St. Agnes Student Activities: Zoom Edition

By Anika Shethia, St. Agnes Academy, School Buzz Reporter | September 29, 2020

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Students begin to head back to campus, but club meetings are still occurring in a virtual format. (Photo courtesy of St. Agnes Academy)

As schools across the nation are forced to choose how to conduct classes safely, student activities and clubs are often pushed aside. At St. Agnes Academy, the administrative staff developed a plan to maintain club events in a manner conducive to online school. St. Agnes started with virtual classes, then transitioned into blended learning in mid-September. Clubs are a vibrant aspect of the SAA community and provide students with the forum to develop hobbies and passions.

At the beginning of the year, a club carnival is hosted where all clubs create posters and presentations that students can view and learn about. Club carnival allows students to select which clubs suit their interests out of the diverse array of options. This event usually occurs on campus, where students enthusiastically group around and learn more about specific clubs. With an on-campus club carnival not being a viable option, this start of the school year, St. Agnes conducted a virtual version. Each club leadership team created a presentation slide describing the details of the club, and these slides were compiled into a presentation sent to each student. Students viewed this presentation and were able to choose which clubs they wanted to join. During the week of Sept. 14, clubs began to host meetings, and students were able to get a taste of virtual club activities.

Blythe Bath, a sophomore, said she is "excited that St. Agnes is preserving the majority of their clubs and extracurriculars during this period of online school." She acknowledges that "attending clubs in a virtual format may have some drawbacks, but definitely has a lot of potential to be both fun and impactful."

Personally, I started a Students Demand Action club at St. Agnes this year. Students Demand Action is a national organization, created by and for students, to amplify the voices of the youth and engage their energy in the fight against gun violence. Working with other high school SDA chapters in Houston, I have formulated ideas to make participation as effective as possible. We plan on hosting monthly Zoom calls to discuss the planning of events and to host them. We will have debate watch parties, open discussions, presentations, and host guest speakers.

Although this year may be stressful and unprecedented, St. Agnes students recuperate through participating in stimulating clubs.