Highland Park is lucky enough to have over 30 extracurricular activities, not including sports. Many of these activities can help discover new talents or hobbies. Extracurricular classes give you a chance to make new friends and learn about things you can’t during a normal school day, not to mention participation in extracurriculars looks amazing on collage applications.

If you are interested in joining a club or after school activity then these are four of the clubs that I found interesting.

Film club is about making movies, not watching them. What could be more fun than making short films? Nothing, and Highland has a whole club for making films. The types of films made are completely decided by the students involved. Last year they made a documentary on the football team and a music video. Film club meets every Thursday in room 2214 from 2:15 to 3:45.

Union Latina is a club dedicated to cultures of Mexico, South America and Central America. Union Latina’s goal is to educate and discuss with students about Latina culture, whether that be music, food, festivals and holidays, or about the hard times and global issues of some of the countries. Union Latina is open to anyone and everyone regardless of ethnicity. They meet every Wednesday in room 3306 from 2:15 – 3:15 pm.

Archery isn’t only for hunters and Robin Hood. The archery team at Highland Park is about learning about shooting safety, concentration and technique. Although the archery team doesn’t participate in tournaments, they are still considered a sport. Archery is a great way to make friends and spend time doing something you enjoy. For more information on times and dates, contact Mr. Martinson at kevin.martinson@spps.org.

Another club I found interesting was Prizm literary magazine. Prizm is an annual magazine that is made up exclusively of student paintings, drawings, poems, short stories and photographs. Anyone is eligible to submit to Prizm through their English clases, but if you are interested in the actual production and editing part of the magazine, join them in room 2222 at 2:15 on Fridays.

Some other clubs available at Highland are Anime Club, Asian Culture Club, Black Student Union, Book Club, Choir, Cyber Security Team, Debate Team, FFA Club, Gender Equality Club, Gender Sexuality Alliance, Instrumental Music, Link Crew, Math Team, Model United Nations, Mountain Biking, National Honors Society, Nucleus, Orchestra Club, The Plaid Line School Newspaper, Robotics, Science Club, Spanish Speaking Debate, Speech Team, Student Council, Yearbook, Youth Alive and Youth in Government.

Highland has a very wide variety of things to do after school so there is something for everyone. As long as you stay balanced and have priorities, after school clubs and activities can only help you. So go out and join a club, meet new people, learn new things. Nothing is worse than not trying and wishing you would have later on.

Link Crew is a program created by the boomerang project, that deals with students’ transition into high school and starting out as a Freshman. The Link Crew leaders help the new students feel welcome to high school and make them feel comfortable when meeting new people and seeing a whole new side of education. 

In these past few years, Highland Park has had many students apply and participate in the Link Crew program, and many students say they have had a great time getting to know the new Freshman class each year as Link leaders, and making all kinds of friendships inside and outside of school.

Link Crew creates multiple events throughout the year to show the Freshman more new and exciting things about high school, help them get to know one another including more about their Link Crew leader, and most importantly– having fun with other students.

The Link Crew leaders consist of Juniors and Seniors that have the many qualities that define what being a leader really means such as: kindness, respect, and motivation. This is especially important in helping students who are a bit scared about what to expect when moving into something new like high school, and needing another person who can make them feel good, and also be a friend.

I sat down and talked to a student of Highland involved in Link Crew

Tahji Brown: A 17-year-old Senior, and also a member of the Senior Class council.

He says “My experience as a Link Crew leader has been fun! I wanted to join Link Crew because I want to make a difference in how Freshman look at high school. Link Crew has a lot of different stuff we do, and I have met a lot of different people inside and out of my group, and I must say, All the Freshman this year are so cute!”  

To have more of a better prospective of what the program means, I also talked to one of the coaches of Link Crew:

Matthew McKinney [Mr. McKinney]: He has been at Highland for 6 years now teaching a few different science classes to the students at Highland.

He is the co-coordinator for Link Crew and he says: “Link Crew has so many great students every year. We help make the Link Crew leaders into good examples for the new students making that transition into high school. One quality that stands out in our leaders is kindness, and that is practiced through socializing with other leaders and communicating to work together. We do all sorts of fun events throughout the year to help the freshman grow in being team oriented, contacting their leader, and building their social skills with others.”

Link Crew has helped many Freshman grow and feel confident about their journey through high school, all the way to their Senior year. The application process for new Link Crew leaders is near the end of the school year in May, and students who will be Juniors and Seniors next school year can apply. High school is a whole different experience, and Link Crew wants to help new students be successful in their education while learning about the other students and exciting opportunities that freshman can get involved with in high school.

To learn more about Link Crew at Highland and hear about their events, check out this link to their webpage on the school website: Link Crew (Highland Park Senior High)