Clubs are meant to showcase a variety of student interests and extracurricular opportunities. However, with a total of 90 clubs on campus, the reality is that there are simply too many clubs at Northwood to oversee, making managing such a large number challenging for the student body. ASB’s initiatives to limit the number of clubs are commendable because they allow students to make clubs for the right reasons.
ASB carefully decides what clubs are allowed to operate, enforcing a cap of 100 clubs. While many aspiring club founders may feel disappointed about ASB restrictions, approving or denying club applications is not a decision ASB takes lightly.
Each semester, the ASB club commissioners, 2024-2025 club commissioners senior Ines Khodja and junior Emily Yokota, compile applications for both new and returning clubs for the ASB cabinet to review. A club is approved if it receives a ¾ majority vote.
To ensure fairness, ASB offers alternative solutions to outright rejection, such as merging clubs with similar missions and purposes. By combining clubs that seek to fulfill a similar role, ASB can distribute resources more effectively and support student organizations better.
“We are very considerate of how clubs will impact the campus community,” Khodja said. “For example, we see clubs like tutoring a lot, which isn’t bad, but it’s unnecessary because tutoring already exists. We try our best to see what can help improve the culture at Northwood.”
Moreover, it is also worth noting that when students start a club because they are motivated to pad a college application resume, clubs come into existence lacking genuine student interest if the process is not regulated. This is a problem ASB sees every year, according to Yokota.
Each club should have its own unique purpose, with the club’s creation coming from a place of pure intentions to contribute to the campus environment. As the deadline for new club applications is approaching, students wanting to start a new club should ask themselves: ‘Why am I making this club?’, ‘Are there any similar clubs on campus?’ and ‘How would this club benefit people at Northwood?’
“If you truly have a passion for something your club will be well thought out and benefit Northwood’s community,” Yokota said. “You can tell when a club exists just to exist rather than because their president truly cares about this topic.”
Having a club proposal rejected by ASB is not the end-all-be-all of your high school experience, nor does it determine whether or not you get into your dream school. Has the number of clubs reached a reasonable amount? Not yet, but ASB’s ongoing efforts are creating a more engaging club environment for all students.