Spirit Rush recruited students into this year’s organizations

The established clubs at MacArthur used the Spirit Rush to recruit members and raise awareness

On Tuesday, September 3 and Thursday, September 5 Assistant Principal Mr. Ray Gonzales, club advisors, and ASB students and the A.S.B Adviser Mrs. Maria Vicario hosted the Spirit Rush.  The Spirit Rush was held in the P.A.R at lunch. The Spirit Rush is a way to present clubs to the students and see if they would like to join.

The clubs that were involved were Journalism/Yearbook, Mactivities, Gardening Club, A.S.B, AVID, C.J.S.F., American Heritage, Boardriders, Hippocrates Circle, and Cup Stacking. In total there were 13 clubs. It approximately took 40 minutes to set up all the booths for the clubs. 

“The reason we have clubs is to get student engagement.  For instance, some students don’t look forward to coming to school, but they can look forward to going to a club that is filled with engaging and fun activities,” said Yearbook Adviser Mr. Gregory Celestino. 

During the Spirit Rush, the clubs were trying to recruit members.  Some clubs held demonstrations. For example, Boardriders were practicing their tricks, American Heritage was collecting information on a Google Form, and cup stacking was practicing breaking down the cup towers.

“The reason I went to Spirit Rush was to see the variety of clubs MacArthur had to offer. In the end, I did not join any clubs but I would have liked to. I think there were many very interesting clubs,” said seventh-grader Dulce Aguilar 

Students are allowed to make clubs or tribes.  All they need to do is get 15 students to join, sign a petition, and get a teacher to use their classroom during club minutes and act as an adviser.  The difference between a club and a tribe is that a club can do more activities than a tribe.  For example, a club can fundraise, purchase items, and go on field trips.  A tribe is less structured and can have informal meetings around their shared interests.

“I like Spirit Rush because it gives me a chance to view all the clubs that will be happening and hopefully find one I like,” said eighth-grader Jasmine Sanchez. 

Club rush is an annual event at MacArthur, usually in the first month.  Students from all grade levels are allowed to attend and view each station for possible clubs.  Clubs get a chance to showcase what they have done in previous years and, hopefully, gather new club members.  Some years, there’s a second-semester version, where clubs share what they’ve done throughout the year.