For over one year, AWHS student-run clubs had to alter their normal meetings and activities to an online setting during COVID-19. As students get back to their normal activities on campus and COVID-19 restrictions loosen, AWHS club leaders are eager to recruit new members.  

On Sept. 23 and 24, AWHS hosted a club day to encourage students to learn about and join new and existing clubs. Many of these clubs focus on improving school culture, while also creating tight-knit communities.

“The Daraja Club… gave me more structure in my life and I got to meet new people at Archie Williams,” said Sarah Conway, AWHS sophomore and past Daraja Club member. 

Despite current COVID-19 circumstances, each club hopes to be able to conduct their traditional lunch time meetings and attend their usual events that were postponed last year. The Daraja Club, which had over 60 sign-ups this year, focuses on raising money to bridge the education gap for women in Kenya and traditionally participates in a charity run each year. Similar to many clubs, their event was impacted by the COVID-19 virus. 

“We usually run in the Bay to Breakers, but because of COVID they weren’t doing that in the city, so we had to do a hike or a run on our own in the trails of Marin,” Sarah said. 

This year, many students created new clubs, including junior Audrey Reeb with her new Feminism Club. This club was organized with the hope of becoming a supportive community for women and improving female safety at school dances. At her club, Audrey expects to host meetings once a week to plan workshops and presentations to educate students on how to become a feminist. 

“It just made me mad how normalized [sexual assault at homecoming] is,” Audrey said. “But it doesn’t have to be that way and I just feel like overall, our school could  use a little help for making our community safer and more nurturing and accepting for girls in general.”

With a new class of students now on campus, many clubs are excited to expand and offer themselves to a variety of students in order to build stronger communities and encourage students to use their voices for positive causes.