What Goes into the Club Fair

By Michael Mayano

Published 10/1/23

Throughout the three lunch waves on September 27th, Cheshire High School's East Gym turned into a hectic and vibrant atmosphere of students swarming from table to table, with each table pitching their two cents on their after-school club. The usually desolate room showcased a rectangular-shaped array of tables hosting dozens of clubs. There were language clubs, such as Italian and Spanish, stem clubs like Robotics and Chemistry, business clubs like FBLA and DECA, and more, including Best Buddies, Baking Club, Young Democrats, and so on. 

During my time spectating the fair, I had the opportunity to ask a club president running a stand some questions about the event. Anja Josef, a senior at CHS and Co-President of the MIA (Medical Interest Association), lent her hand during the third lunch wave to advocate at her club's table. She described the CHS Club Fair as a promising time particularly for freshmen to obtain an insight into the many offerings for extracurriculars that could very well become their livelihood for the next four years. There was incredible behind-the-scenes labor put in by each group to display their best foot at the club fair this year; Anja and the MIA, for instance, met over a week prior to make preparations. In the classroom after school on the 18th, the club sought out volunteers to run the table during the three lunch shifts, as well as members yearning to fashion flyers and posters. 

Now, with the Club Fair in hindsight, I asked Anja what modifications she wished had happened for her club to gain more signups and garner more attention to their table. The first addition she believed her club was missing was a sign-up sheet itself, which several clubs utilized this year and in years past to have prospective names to reach out to. By possessing a sheet of paper to collect interested students’ names, she explained, she would be able to reach out to them after the event. It is comparable to colleges attaining high school students’ emails, so they can contact them personally with information on their school, rather than having the student do the research themselves. This was not the first thing on Anja’s mind, however. When I asked Anja this question, she immediately blurted “candy”. There is not a more fruitful method to bring awareness to your club stand than having some sort of food. Some notable snacks from this year were the cookies made by the Baking Club and the Spanish sweets from the Spanish Club. 

In brief, the Club Fair is an exciting experience no matter the grade of the CHS student, since it is never too late to pursue a new interest or join a club that involves something amusing to you. There are extracurricular clubs which range from small-scale involvement to larger effort and participation. At Cheshire High School, the community is interested in assembling a club for as many people as possible, and the large network of clubs enables students to make friends and be social with others who have similar passions. One thing for sure is that each Club Fair gives every student a way to find their niche at CHS.