Students Share a Sense of Purpose in Community Engagement Presentations 

Upper School clubs give students an opportunity to come together around a common interest or cause. In mid-March, 10th-grade student club leaders designed workshops to share their interests with classmates. In each workshop, leaders presented details about their club, described what motivated them to become involved and, in some cases, provided information about an affiliated nonprofit organization. The workshops also included hands-on activities for participants related to each club’s purpose. 

At the Heal the Bay Club workshop, Shane O’Sullivan, Maddi Kayne and Jordyn Schaer opened with a slideshow explaining the Santa Monica Bay ecosystem and the environmental impact of humans living on land around the bay. Workshop participants split into groups to sift through small containers of beach sand and sort the bits of trash they found. Discussion followed about different types of pollution and the ways that Heal the Bay mobilizes the community to protect the coastline, restore waterways and advocate for clean water policy.

Three other community service-based clubs—Underprivileged Youth Fundraiser Brainstorm, Special Olympics Inclusion and Sheltering Hearts Charity Club—also presented engaging workshops to raise awareness among students through education and hands-on activities.

“I was impressed by how meaningful these club activities are to students. It was wonderful to see them share what they care about with their classmates,” said Hali Morell, Upper School Community Engagement Department Co-Chair and Life Skills teacher. 

Workshops were also presented by members of InvenTeam, which participates in an annual STEM contest, and Rhythm & Art, where students create art inspired by a different music video each month. Rhythm & Art co-founders Finn Freedman and Liam Kelman explained that their club promotes artistic expression and empowers students to share their work while helping them build portfolios for their college applications. 

As Finn said, “Art is more fun if it’s shared with a group of people. Even if you make something on your own, you want to bring it back and share it with everyone.”