Purpose. The central goal for academic organizations is to help students find purpose.

It’s no secret that today’s students are overwhelmingly busy. Oftentimes, the pressure and stress that derives from the seemingly never ending amounts of homework, exams, and deadlines, wear away a student’s desire to learn, to act on their genuine passions, and most importantly of all, diminish a student’s ability to build their true identity.

Devoted to leading students away from this worrisome prospect, WHS academic organizations drive students to explore the environment around them, offer new tools and information they might not have had access to in a regular classroom, and create a refreshingly different take on education, all which help spark new interests within students.

In fact, FBLA member Austin Early believes that academic organizations are important to our school because they “give students the ability to reach out of their comfort zones, meet new people they might not have ever had to interact with before, and explore different choices within [the] workforce.”

For the students who have already found their true calling, these academic organizations allow them to fully immerse themselves in a field of study they love and surround themselves with students who are passionate about it just as much as they are. Additionally, students can prepare for their future careers to begin evolving into the person they want to become.

“Academic Clubs like TSA help promote students to expand their knowledge and apply what they have learned in a competitive environment,” TSA member Andrew Curtis said. “This positions students to succeed in school and in  their future pursuits.”

But aside from learning skills that will improve students in relation to school, one of the most important aspects of academic organizations is facilitating the improvement of a person’s character. From community service projects to obligating a time commitment, academic organizations prompt students to become a better version of themselves.

“Because of the requirements in order to remain a member of organizations like NHS, it keeps many of us conscious of how our eligibility to remain in these clubs relies heavily on our work ethic,” NHS member Alena Gay said.  “As we are all required to maintain a certain GPA, a respectable nature, and appropriate leadership skills, it allows us, members to be continuously aware of the consequences, whether they be good or bad, of our actions.”

Finding a purpose and building an identity is one of the defining aspects of a student’s time spent in high school. Without a doubt, WHS academic organizations have helped hundreds, if not thousands, of students, build their own.