Here at North Seattle College, there are many ways to get involved with the campus community. For example, any student can join a club or start their own. I have heard several students express their great club ideas, but they are not sure how to get clubs started. The process for creating a club is much simpler than most students think. On August 6th, I sat down with Megan Davies, the 2018-2019 Club Council coordinator, to clarify this process and reveal the positive outcomes of participating in club activities.

Afsara: How many clubs are there currently?

Megan: There are no clubs during the summer, but the last academic year ended with about 38 clubs. 

Afsara: Where can students find information for club meeting times? 

Megan: On the Student Leadership website, there is a page for clubs, which has a table including information for club names, club emails, club leaders, meeting times, and locations. Physically, there is also the student clubs board in the Student Leadership office with club meeting times listed. At any point, you can also ask one of the Club Council members in the office for a roster of student clubs. 

Afsara: What is the process for joining an existing club?

Megan: If you want to be a club member, all you have to do is show up to a meeting. Certain clubs keep track of their members with a sign in sheet for every single meeting, but some are more relaxed. For example, the Gaming Club has a lot more drop in students who come in for one or two meetings, depending on the games they’re playing. Since all clubs are open to any student at North Seattle College, you can just walk in to any club. 

Afsara: What is the process for starting a new club?

Megan: We now have dual online and in person forms. The club activation form is on the Student Leadership website and in the Student Leadership office. It is one sheet, front and back, and asks for things such as the club’s purpose and goals. It also asks for basic information such as your name, the advisor’s name, your email, and what you want the club’s public email to be. Some people choose to make their personal email public, but others create a public email. Another requirement is getting 10 signatures from students in support of the club. A lot of people think that the 10 signatures have to be by people that want to join the club, but they actually just need to be people who are in support of forming the club on campus. For example, if you’re signing in support of an “I Hate Plants” club, you don’t have to hate plants! You can just be curious about where they’re coming from. 

Afsara: What is an example of a past club event that was successful?

Megan: The Robotics club has had a lot of really cool, successful events. They have had Skype interviews with NASA engineers and the people in the control room for rocket takeoffs. They have done rocket workshops where they have gotten people their level one certifications. I also know that movie nights are always a hit. LGBTQ+ had a successful movie night showing Love, Simon and the Chemistry club has also had a good movie night turnout. 

Afsara: What in particular about those events do you think made them so successful? 

Megan: For movies, I think that it’s really easy for people to come to a movie night because you don’t have to put yourself out there as much. It’s not like you have to introduce yourself and talk to all of the members. You’re just sitting with a group of people who also want to enjoy the movie, so it’s a really easy way to get out there without too much social interaction. Since the rocketry program here is so good, I think that if people are even just a little bit interested, they are are more inclined to go to it because of their past success. They also have own little private shop area. 

Afsara: Those events seem like a great way to meet more people. 

Megan: Yes, exactly. I always recommend them. 

Afsara: Can you recall a time when a specific club made a positive impact on campus? 

Megan: What comes to mind the most is Spring Fair 2018 when the Student Leadership Events Board ran out of their budget. Each club has a budget of $500 per year so we then turned to the clubs and asked, “Do you want to sponsor some things at this event?” The Flat Earth club sponsored the bouncy house, if I recall correctly, and another sponsored the snowcones. I believe LGBTQ+ donated the remainder of their budget as well. Any club that didn’t use their budget sponsored these cool activities and made them possible. 

Afsara: Can you think of any other information about clubs that would be good to know?

Megan: I think that it’s just really hard getting into the world of clubs if you’re not socially inclined. Before joining Student Leadership, I never would have put myself out there to join a club. After working with clubs and seeing how beneficial they are and how much of a community they’ve become with people who started off as strangers, I know how impactful they can be. 

Afsara Sadiya 

2018-2019 Student Cabinet Coordinator