The day of the average high school student is stressful and long, one might say. 

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When the day begins at 8:00 AM, and the average student must go through incredibly difficult and boring classes that teach a flurry of numbers that if combined in some form would produce another number, bunches of dead/living important people that shaped and molded the US to be the absolute utopian* powerhouse it is currently, this rock of which we stand on that has billions of years worth of history, confusing and overall overwhelming formulas and difficult compounds that make up said living rock (the Earth), and a myriad of other things, the body gets tired and the brain gets muddy and foggy. Paired with sometimes incomprehensible amounts of homework and projects, the added Denali-esc stress put on when a test or quiz is near, school and social life sometimes being incredibly confusing and taxing with added problems if beef occurs between the average student and anyone else, and many other unnamed problems, and this body and mind of the average high school student quickly shuts down and gets dilapidated with each passing day. Even then so, if you add sports on it, no matter what season, than that’s less time spent on homework, projects, studying, or relaxing, and more time spent on perfecting your craft at the specific sport, fine-tuning yourself to be as reliable and important as humanly possible, pushing yourself a little too close to the edge a far few amount of times, and coming out of the season 3 pounds lighter and 4 pounds worth of water weight heavier (within an instant, even).

 

So, after all of that, why don’t you shove these fairly common but big problems aside, and catapult into the world of school clubs? After all, sometimes all you want to do after school is to go to a random room or area in the school, and do something you love from 30 minutes to an hour 1 day out of the week, right? If that even slightly interests you, then please read, as below are some of the many clubs hosted here in Brandon Valley High School.

First, as a simple clarification, there is not one club suited for every single student apart of BVHS. Obviously, the clubs listed are going to be for specific interests, however with clubs coming and going each and every year, there’s bound to be one that peaks your interest. Most of the clubs listed typically meet once per week, with some clubs (such as Oral Interp) meeting two or sometimes three days of the week (of course, when it comes to organizations, such as Math NHS/National Honor Society or Tri-M, there are no meetups; you’re simply apart of it). There are currently 21 clubs listed, of which will be put into 3 different general categories: Personal Interests, Academic or Musical Talents, and Student Communication. Finally, all clubs listed are a part of the “Clubs and Orgs” tab at the BVHS website under Students, therefore any sports or extracurricular activities not listed under the tab won’t be mentioned. Without further ado, let us start with the Personal Interests category.

 

Personal Interests:

• If you have always loved the Star Wars franchise, and want a group of people to nerd out about it, then Star Wars Club is for you. Meeting from 3:20 to 4:30 on Mondays, they watch and discuss the various movies, roleplay, and overall geek out about George Lucas’s work.

• Drama club is all about anything and everything regarding theater and musical theater. Musicals, plays, and one acts, from high school productions, all the way to Broadway officials, is what they fancy. Typically, they watch the plays, then discuss everything about them. If you want to go on trips, they go on one every four years, with the last being in 2023 to NYC.

• For those of you who specialize in art, Creative Minds/Art Club is exactly for you. From creating artworks, to criticizing different famous pieces, to even exploring outside of pen and paper, such as pottery, people at Creative Minds delves into anything created by hand (or with help of a computer). Although, you must submit a piece that you have created, and Mr. Nelson will then determine if you may join Creative Minds.

• For those of you who are Christian, and are wanting to explore and talk about your faith in God, First Priority is right up your alley. Every Tuesday morning, they lead fellowship, have food/breakfast, play games, and overall have fun.

• As we all know, drug and substance abuse is unfortunately common all throughout the US. Our school is no stranger to this problem, with the high use of vaping and other products. Fortunately, you can join SADD-TATU (Students Against Destructive Desicions-Teenagers Against Tobacco Use) to inform, warn, and teach people the dangers of drug abuse. They typically meet afterschool on Wednesdays.

• Going back to Christianity, FSA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) is a group of non-athletes and athletes alike that talk and inform about life lessons gained from sports and other activities, and how to gain a bigger relationship with Jesus Christ through these activities. Typically, they meet at other student’s homes every other Sunday at 7 PM.

• Off the branch of Oral Interpretation, Public Speaking is a club all about - you guessed it - public speaking. You can either write your own speeches, or find some online, then go to different competitions to practice and perfect your public speaking skills (they’re actually practicing every day to get ready for State, according to Gina Koehn). They can either do it at school, or independently, of course.

• Are you passionate about the harms of global warming/climate change, and want to improve the current situation at a local level? The Environmental Club is probably right up your alley. They go around the school and pick up the many different recyclables that we instead throw in the trash, as well as clean up the school, go on different trips and clean up those areas, and typically talk and encourage people about thinking what to place in the trash, and what to recycle.

 

Those should be all of the clubs that regard Public Interest. Next up is Academic or Musical Talents. These are clubs that mainly tailor to those with a talent or skill in the academic, musical, or sportslike area (such as Trapshooting).

• If you ever want to go to college for any field regarding biology, or just curious, Biology Club is there for you. Meeting after school on Thursdays, they typically make “green” or biology based projects, upkeep the marine aquarium found at the science wing of this school, and even judge the local elementary school’s science fair. 

• Any of y’all want to go into healthcare? Then join HOSA! This club is used to harbor, incubate, and grow further interest and skill regarding any field that works with Healthcare. They typically train their kids on how to give proper healthcare, listen to professionals and watch videos of professionals discussing their current careers and what they do, offer many opportunities to engage in healthcare, and even host a competitive event in the spring for those who want to challenge their healthcare skills! Typically, they meet after school bi-monthly.

• There are obviously some of you who specialize in answering random questions and pride yourself in knowledge on bizarre and obscure subjects. If that fits you, join the Quiz Bowl. Think of it as Jeopardy!, but on a school level. They meet up one morning and one afternoon (separate days) to practice, learn, and study possible questions for upcoming local tournaments. If you want more insensitive; Ryan Presler, a former BVHS student and member of the Quiz Bowl, actually got on Jeopardy! before.

• Got a knack for acting out plays without props? The door to Oral Interpretation is right this way. They’re a group of people that pick out a specific play, take out a bit from it, and then act it out using just their body/voice in front of an audience (either by themselves or with a group). They do local (and regional!) performances, are pretty dang good at it, and there’s even a class! If you can’t join the class, there’s also after school, of course.

• As a school located in the midwest, there are bound to be hunters and farmers that live in the country and probably have a bird/animal kill count in the tens of dozens and even the hundreds. The Trapshooting club is there for those types of kids grade 6th-12th who have completed a gun safety course, and who would like to improve their gunsmanship and compete in a variety of competitions in the local area. They meet/compete Tuesday and Thursday nights from 4:30-7:00 PM and are one of the biggest teams in the state.

 

After all of those clubs, the ones up next are Student Communication. These clubs are primarily for communication between students by students, and are mainly there to help and improve school life.

• Best Buddies is a club that allows those to help students that have physical, mental and emotional disabilities and disorders interact and have fun with those who don’t have disabilities, which allows them to form friendships for a lifetime. They typically go on field trips, do special classes that tailor towards living a normal life (including Fit For Life, a class that allows those with disabilities to participate in PE with some of their “buddies”), and even bring coffee around on Fridays for teachers, named Cup of Joy. Recently they created and established a shop named Buddies And Co., which sell coffee, energy drinks, boba, and various other drinks, including donuts and snacks. Buddies And Co. hires and gives those with disabilities jobs, allowing them to get money to fund other means/help them ease into the normal world. It’s by Ace Hardware, at 1309 E Cedar Street, please give them a visit.

• The FFA is all about careers and pushing students into figuring out what they want to do when they grow up. They get workers and employees from many different companies in South Dakota (primarily in the Sioux Falls-Harrisburg-Tea area) to come over to different classes and talk about what they do for a living. They host a variety of events throughout the year, (like petting zoos and bowling competitions), and have many classes on just about anything that a normal college would host classes for. 

• Although I’ve already talked about SADD-TATU, they go in this category as well.

• The BV Mentoring Program is there for students who want to teach or help out people with any of the four major topics for school. They typically seek out students involved in NHS and Math-NHS, pair them with a middle school student with C’s or below (who also have a free period, study hall, or lunch period), and allow them to tutor/teach whatever the student is struggling with. This is one where you create the schedule, so they don’t meet up for specific days.

• Student Council is the official “governing” body for students that help plan, create, and fund school wide events and activities. Think of it as a political position; they get voted in by the people, and therefore they bring up views and concerns from the mass body of students, and using knowledge, common sense, and opinions from any differencing sides, make a decision that pleases both, which becomes a rule or a thing in the school. Meetings are held at the beginning of each month.

• What is also related to academics is SALSA. Via the South Dakota HELP!Line Center, SALSA facilitates group meetings and allows students to volunteer and help with a majority of nonprofit organizations and different companies. This allows students to explore new jobs and careers, increase awareness and strength of nonprofits, and generally allows them to help and communicate with a variety of different people.

 

That is a list of all of the clubs and organizations that you can join and be apart of in this high school. Organizations who don’t have any meetups, such as the National Honor Society, Math National Honor Society, and Tri-M, are sadly not apart of this group, but you may join. Once again, there’s a fairly big chance a personal interest of yours or something you’re passionate about is not a focal point of any of the groups mentioned, but don’t worry; there are always clubs and organizations coming and going within the years, and there is always a chance that in your 4-year span of high school, some club will pop up and pique your interest. You can always make a club yourself; inform the office about the club you want to make, then find a teacher who can host that club (this is mainly to get yourself a room), specify what days and times you would meet up, and then advertise around the school, whether it be posters or by word-of mouth. Clubs and organizations are always an amazing opportunity to chat and talk to people that have similar interests to you, and fight or inform about something you’re passionate about. Just be sure to never take this opportunity for granted.