West Orange High School just concluded their annual Club Rush in the media center. During Club Rush, various clubs set up attractive booths, and encouraged students to join their organization. It provided students with many opportunities to get involved in their community and showed all that West Orange has to offer. Everyone wanted to join Beta Club, National Honor Society, Best Buddies, or FBLA, but those are just some of the big, well-known clubs here at West Orange. There are some other amazing clubs that provide many opportunities for students that a lot of people don’t really know about.
Sisterhood Sanctuary
First up, we have Sisterhood Sanctuary Club, sponsored by teacher April Kassar, the AP World History teacher. This club is brand new to West Orange as of the 2024-2025 school year. The club meets in room 533, either on the first Tuesday or Wednesday of each month. This club is a supportive, inclusive space where students (specifically girls) can come together to share their feelings, thoughts, and experiences without judgment. When asked how the club got started, Mrs. Kassar responded by saying, “3 of my students from last year came and asked if I would sponsor it. They wanted a club that focused more so on issues that girls go through, but don’t have an outlet to talk about.”
At school, the club would include team bonding games that allow students to get comfortable with each other, building a strong sense of community between the members. Out of the club, members would participate in volunteer activities that support women and girls in the community. The club also aims to include a “Big Sister, Little Sister” program where the upperclassmen can provide mentorship and guidance to the underclassmen, creating an emotional, trustworthy connection. Ms. Kassar hopes that in the long-run, the club will “provide opportunities for people to come together and talk about female issues in comfort.”
HOSA
Next up, we have HOSA Club, sponsored by teacher Joshua Katz, the Biomedical Sciences teacher. This club is also brand new to West Orange as of the 2024-2025 school year. The club meets on Wednesdays in room 541. Since the club is fairly new, the details are still being worked out, so there isn’t a definitive Wednesday of each month. The club was started through the inquiry of a student who had wanted to start this club at West Orange as it is already in action at other OCPS schools.
When asked exactly what HOSA is, Coach Katz said that, “HOSA is an organization that is dedicated to students who are interested in being professionals in the healthcare field in the future. It is designed to help students spread themselves along, help them develop the skills necessary to be successful, and get them recognition in that field.” A big part of HOSA is competitions. There are different competitions at the regional, or even national level that are based primarily on the healthcare aspet that HOSA focuses on. The goal of the club at school is to help students grow and prepare for these competitions, showing that we can be competitive.
Helping The Homeless
Finally, we have Helping the Homeless Club, sponsored by teacher Aysa Mahoney, a science teacher. The club doesn’t have a definitive meet date for each month as Ms. Mahoney sponsors many other clubs, but the club will meet in room 613. The president of the club, Megan Hamlin, Grade 12, started this club with a friend because she felt that even though there are clubs at school that help the community, “no one really tends to care about the homeless”.
She thought it would be a good idea to start donating, volunteering, and hosting fundraisers in order to help. For example, the club made 50 sandwiches and went and donated them to those in need, and also partnered with the schools Key Club to host a donation drive. Megan hopes that the club will “give students a better view on homelessness and how to help” because many give it a bad reputation. She hopes that students will take this opportunity to help their community to those who need it.
As you can see, Sisterhood Sanctuary, HOSA, and Helping the Homeless all have so much to offer. These are just a few of the many small, underground clubs that West Orange has, so the possibilities are endless. Students should consider joining clubs that are not as well-known, in addition to joining the ones that are. Each of these clubs stand out in their own individual ways, and provide students with many opportunities to impact their community.
