Photo by Rohan Kakkar
Club sponsors attempt to recruit students to their clubs.
A community like no other.
An opportunity to broaden horizons, strengthen talent and take on leadership roles.
The club fair at St. Mark’s isn’t just a group of generic clubs where people wander around; it’s a huge event with around 70 clubs with tons of students signing up for multiple clubs.
Every year in September, there are tables put up around the perimeter of Spencer Gymnasium and posters erected with faces behind them eager to convince students to join their club. Dozens of boxes of donuts are available to students to keep them entertained. The Blues Club plays fun, light-hearted music in the background. Shouts of “Join MY club!” and “Sign up now, you won’t regret it!!” and even “My club is better than his, choose mine!” echo throughout the gym.
Not only does the club fair encourage students to step out of their comfort zones and try something new, but it brings about a sense of belonging and community.
“It’s an opportunity for boys to get together and share an interest or a passion with each other and then also share that space with a faculty member who has a shared interest or passion,” Head of Upper School William Atkinson said.
From political forum to philosophy club, and fly-fishing club to Pokémon club, there’s a club for any interest under the sun. Although it may seem intimidating to start a club from scratch, the school makes it easy and helps students through the process.
Sophomore Sawyer Goldstein started his “Future Founders” club with a few friends and was extremely successful during the club fair, where 40 students signed up. The club coordinates with alumni and connects students with business leaders who are alumni, helping students foster interest in business innovation. All it took was submitting a club form and finding a sponsor.
When the form is submitted, administration has to approve the club, making sure it is appropriate and realistic.
“It has to align with the mission and values of the school,” Head of Discipline Jason Leneau said. “We want things to happen as much as possible… and we want to be mindful of that, going through each club’s desires and interests.”
Clubs gather after school, during lunch, and sometimes during flex time. The most important part of clubs is the students leading them who include all the other students and encourage them to show up. Typically, seniors, but sometimes juniors and sophomores, these students create their own community and engage in it. The head of the club will bring pizza or other treats to create a friendly atmosphere, leading boys to come back the following week.
No school has a club environment as strong as St. Mark’s. Sure, some schools have a few clubs students casually attend, but no school will be able to convey the community that St Mark’s creates.
“I’ve worked at a couple of different schools and clubs,” Leneau said. “This environment is different. Other schools do engage with clubs, but this place has done a number of things well: they’re very intentional about it, and there’s a lot of structure around it, too. Clubs are just another kind of feather in the cap in terms of how St. Mark’s does things.”