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SHS STUDENT ACTIVITIES
At the beginning of the year, announcements on the P.A.
system provide information about the start of student activities and the
dates of scheduled general or committee meetings. Articles will also appear
regularly in The Knight, the student newspaper, about the following clubs
and school activities, which vary from year to year.
Alternate Infinity
This club is for students interested in science fiction, horror, suspense,
imagination, speculative and occult literature and films. Students address
the questions raised by authors of this literature to help them cope with
change in their own lives. They reflect on the problems they share with
all humanity on a planet with problems of ecological balance, human/machine
interaction, new technologies and even the survival of the planet itself.
The broad category of “science fiction’ as the only future-oriented
literature, has the ability to provide some answers. The group meets weekly.
Chess Club
The Chess Club is designed as tournament play among Stoughton High School
students. All levels, from beginners to advanced, are involved. Those
who wish to learn this game of intellectual strategy are encouraged to
attend. The Chess Club meets once a week. Prizes are awarded at the end
of the season.
Civil Rights Team
Operating within the framework of Stoughton High School’s peer leadership
program, and with the cooperation of other student groups like the Gay-Straight
Alliance, the Civil Rights team’s mission is to cultivate and train
a diverse corps of students to increase safety in their schools by fighting
bias, bigotry and racism through programs, projects and education. An
additional goal is to expose students to laws and policies regarding harassment
and hate crimes. This state-wide effort is coordinated by the National
Conference of Community and Justice and the Governor’s Task Force
on Hate Crimes.
Color Guard
The Color Guard is open to any interested student in grades nine through
twelve. The Color Guard works with the marching band during the fall season
at home football games and in marching band competitions. The 91-92 Guard
was selected as “Best Color Guard’ in the New England Scholastic
Band Association Division III Competition held in October at Oliver Ames
High School. Members of the guard learn and perform marching routines,
prop and flag choreography, and dance. The Guard participates with the
band in the town parades.
Debate Club
The debate club, which meets weekly, is open to anyone at any time during
the year who would like to discuss and/or argue topics of interest. Both
Lincoln-Douglas debate and Policy debate are practiced. Whenever feasible,
the team will attend regional forensics tournaments, focusing primarily
on speech competition.
Drama
Two major productions are held each year. Dinner Theatre is performed
in late autumn, and a musical is performed in the spring. Auditions are
announced over the loud speaker for several days before they are held.
All stage crew jobs are also open to students. A talent show is co-produced
with Student Council and held in the winter.
Gay/Straight Alliance
The Gay Straight Alliance was formed during the school year 1997-98 with
the support of the Stoughton Public School’s administration and
the Massachusetts Department of Education. The goals of the organization
are to provide a safe environment for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender
students, as well as straight students, and to offer opportunities for
education and discussion on GLBT issues for all members of the Stoughton
community. The group meets regularly and is ideally co-advised by a male
and female staff member. Most of the activities supported by grants from
the Department of Education. The group has participated in regional workshops,
hosted guest speakers, and sponsored programs and workshops for concerned
students and faculty.
Intramural Writing Competition
To select two juniors to represent Stoughton in the National Council of
Teachers of English Writing Competition, the English department each fall
sponsors the Intramural Writing Competition. Juniors who participate must
submit a sample of their best writing and complete a one-hour impromptu
writing assignment on a topic given to them at the time of the competition.
The English department judges the entries and awards the outstanding student
submissions Honorable Mention, Semi Finalist, or Finalist certificates.
The two finalists then compete in the national writing competition in
March.
The Knight
The Knight, SHS’s student newspaper, meets weekly to plan, write,
and edit news, features, and editorials of interest to the student population.
All students are welcome to attend meetings and submit articles, photos,
and illustrations for publication. The Knight publishes at least four
times a year.
Law Club
The Law Club is open to all students in grades 9 - 12 who are interested
in law. The club sponsors guest speakers on various law-related topics
of interest to the membership. In previous years, members have visited
the Southeast Correctional Facility’s Project Outlook Program.
Omega Club
The Omega Club is for students who enjoy exploring and celebrating all
aspects of cultural diversity at SHS. The students in this club aim to
learn about each other’s differences so that they have a better
appreciation of the diverse world in which we all live. Primary goals
include: developing leadership skills, doing community service, planning
projects, hosting guest speakers, holding workshops and having fun.
Math Team
The objective of the math team is to give any student interested in mathematics
a chance to compete against students from other schools. This helps students
become aware that there are people in other communities who are also interested
in mathematics. They are also competing against the clock and must learn
to think quickly. Some extra work is required of the students in preparation
for the competition. This can be accomplished after school and at home
by completing practice exams.
Music programs: Jazz Band, Jazz Choir, Marching Band, Show Choir
The High School Music Department offers many opportunities to perform
with a challenging musical group, either vocally or instrumentally. The
groups perform at many school concerts and also participate in regional,
state, and national tournaments. The music program has been consistently
ranked tops in New England for the past ten years. Auditions are required
for Jazz Band, Jazz Choir, and Show Choir.
National Honor Society
Membership to the National Honor Society is open only to juniors and seniors
who have maintained a B+ grade point average and who have shown leadership
qualities both in school and in the community. National Honor Society
is a service organization which raises money for national charities, volunteers
in the community, tutors students throughout the Stoughton school system,
and awards a scholarship to a graduating senior.
Peer Leadership
Peer Leadership has been active in Stoughton since 1987. It has a long-standing
association with the community health committee. Its primary goals are
to develop leadership skills and strategies of avoiding peer pressure.
Members host the annual blood drive, participate in parent forums, staff
a booth at the Sinai Health Fair and attend a number of events surrounding
“Team Harmony.” In general, Peer Leadership coordinates activities,
which promote harmony, equity, diversity, and an appreciation of a substance-free
lifestyle. Members work with a variety of local and regional groups whose
goals are consistent with theirs. Members meet weekly to plan activities
and to discuss issues as they affect Stoughton and the world. Any Stoughton
High School student is eligible to join at any time throughout the year.
Recycling Club
The Recycling Club is a group of students who care about the environment.
Anyone may participate. So far, the Recycling Club has organized a program
to return all five-cent deposit cans and to recycle all non-refundable
aluminum drink cans. Currently, members are working on a program for recycling
paper.
S.A.D.D.
S.A.D.D.’s goal is to make students aware of the risks involved
with alcohol and drug abuse. Members accomplish this through a series
of activities: making announcements at critical times of the year; writing
newspaper articles; distributing message cards; providing red ribbons;
hanging posters; creating bulletin boards and a billboard.
Science Fair
The Science Fair is an annual event open to everyone. Students are encouraged
to pursue a research topic of interest, then prepare a report, conduct
an experiment and compete in a fair judged by experts in the field of
science. The Fair is composed of two divisions, exhibit and experimental.
Winners are eligible to compete at a higher level in both the regional
and state science fairs.
Science Olympiad Team
The Science Olympiad Team is open to students of all grades. We compete
in regional competition once per month, and in March in the State Science
Olympiad. The events cover a wide range of topics and include interesting
projects to be built. Meetings and sign-ups are held in D108 with Mr.
Carey. Last year’s team took home many medals and had fun. All are
welcome.
Stotonian Yearbook
Members of the Stotonian staff meet in order to plan, discuss, distribute
forms, type, work on layout sheets, sell advertising space, and sell yearbooks.
Contributors write, sketch, draw, cut and paste, and study yearbooks of
the past from SHS and from other schools. Journalism experience, either
through course work or school newspaper work, is a plus.
Student Council
Student Council holds meetings in the evenings, which are open to the
entire student body. Fifteen members are elected from each class in the
spring of every year by their peers. The principal, on the recommendation
of the Student Council adviser, may appoint two students from each class
who ran and weren’t elected. Two at-large members may also be appointed
in the same manner. The Student Council members elect Student Council
officers after the general election. Both new members and members from
the previous year may vote. Some of the activities Student Council is
involved with are: developing the all-school calendar, running all school
elections, coordinating Spirit Week, making weekly visits to the Copley
Nursing Home, decorating Blue Hills Nursing Home for the holidays, overseeing
the Winter Dance, sponsoring a Sweetheart Dance for grades 1-5, providing
a dinner with entertainment for the senior citizens of the community,
and attending regional and statewide meetings and conventions. Other activities
are included as the needs arise.
Student Advisory Council
The Student Advisory Council is comprised of the Student Council president,
the regional Student Council representative, the student representative
to the School Committee and class representatives (one for each class).
Each spring elections determine the following year’s membership.
The role of this council is to represent the student body at periodic
meetings with the principal. Student handbook revision, the addressing
of concerns, and the proposal of new ideas are a few examples of this
important student leadership council.
Wings - S.H.S. Literary Magazine
Membership in the staff of Wings, S.H.S.’s literary magazine, is
open to students who are interested in writing, art, or any aspect of
magazine production. Students meet regularly to share, discuss, and revise
their work. After revision is completed, lay out and edit of the magazine
for publication takes place. The staff also encourages other students,
who are not active members, to submit papers as well.
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