A parade of cheerleaders and dancers welcomed parents and students through the school doors while music blasted from the speakers. Dozens of posters, pamphlets, “spin the wheel” games and Crumble cookies lined the courtyard. The quad was packed with a food truck, robots, trophies, and baton twirlers, but what clubs would students sign up for this year?

The first Club Crawl took place on Aug. 4 in the courtyard and was set up by the Leadership team to encourage students to learn about the different clubs and teams available this school year. Under the pavilions, students could search through the different clubs, ask leaders about sign up and get information on upcoming meetings, all while taking cover from the rain.

“Our leadership students worked really hard on this over the summer and they actually spent all of their time planning and organizing,” said Leadership sponsor Sarah Bearss.

Due to COVID-19, last year’s student population decreased as many transferred to FLVS or Seminole Connect, causing many clubs to become inactive and lose potential members, but this year they came back with a bang, opening up to a larger student audience.

“This is the first time we’ve ever had all of our clubs and teams represented in the same space for our student body to come and see what we offer,” said Bearss.

From staple organizations like the National Honors Society to returning groups like the Majorettes, a great variety of clubs were shown to cater to different students’ interests and hobbies.

“I signed up for Asian Club, Education Rocks, and Optimist Club,” said sophomore Savannah Nguyen-Meyer, “I feel that they will fit my schedule, and I like helping my community and learning more about my ethnic heritage.”

While returning students may have already been part of the clubs available at school, freshmen and many others were still able to sign up for clubs, provide their emails for future information, or see the requirements needed for some activities.

“We advertised our Instagram at our booth, where we post information about sign-up, meetings, and other activities we do around campus,” said senior Hallie Yonker, president of Girl Up.

While the main point of the event was to encourage students to see and join the different organizations available on campus, many other activities were also available to students.

“Inside the cafeteria, we had special events for our seniors where they got to do their ‘Paws on the Wall,’ which is always a fun event, and then they got to decorate their senior crowns,” said Bearss, “I know our Senior Activities Committee put on a great event inside and they had some sweet little cookies and treats as well.”

Thanks to the increased interest in student involvement, many leaders and sponsors left the event with a larger group of members than the previous year. The rise in student members could come from the advertisement of clubs to new students or returning upperclassmen, but many groups surged with the incoming freshmen.

“I think this brought a larger group of students to our club than during a normal year,” said Yonker, “actually, how I learned about my club was a similar event my freshman year.”

As they were met with the chance to return many clubs that were made lifeless from last year’s restrictions, the administration continued to encourage students to scout the dozens of clubs, teams and honors societies available to them this year during the transition back to “normal”.

“I definitely think half the battle of kids getting involved is knowing what’s out there, so by being able to come to an event like this and find their interests, I think it gives the kids an opportunity right off the bat to start the year doing something that they will be interested in,” said Bearss.

The 2021 Club Crawl offered students more than just the chance to buy their class shirts, win a water bottle, or get poured on by rain, it gave them the opportunity to expand their interests and find out what subjects they wish to explore this upcoming school year.