As another school year at Mark Keppel begins, students bring new ideas and branches of community through the development of the unique clubs. Spanning from music, politics, and fashion, students’ creativity and passion will expand to create a diverse array of groups to choose from. Each club, committed to their unique themes, strives to create a place where students can convene to share work, ideas, and other interests.
Music Diversity club:
Are you someone who loves listening and talking about music? Or maybe you’re looking to get into music, but don’t know where to start? The Music Diversity Club, created by Jae To, senior, is here for all your music listening needs. The music diversity club is meant to bring people together through their music differences, connecting people, and shining a new light on different music artists and genres. To envisions this club being “a small portal that unlocks this diversity of music.”. Music is something people often use to cope, and by joining this club, people will have a new outlet for self expression and to simply share the things they’re interested in with other people. This is a place where people can focus on something that brings them joy and widen their knowledge of what music is out there. Who knows, maybe an artist you discover here will become your new favorite.
“Snug N’ Stitch”:
Have you taken interest in making your own clothes, possibly crocheting, or knitting? If so, then the “Snug N’ Stitch” club, created by President Soluna Aldana and Vice President Amanda Ta, is a great place to practice those interests while meeting new people that share the same ones. Fiber arts refers to any art that has to do with synthetic materials such as yarn. Even if you’ve just discovered fiber arts from reading this article – you can still join. In this club, you will learn how to create anything from clothes to tapestry, and the board members are happy to take suggestions as to what they’ll be making that week. While you take part in the “Snug N Stitch” club you may find that a calmness will rush over you, like both Aldana and Ta have found themselves. They’ve described practicing fiber arts as a “safe space”, a place that’s just you and your yarn, where you can focus on one thing, at one moment, and watch your worries fall off your shoulders – not to mention you end up with a cute hat in the end!
Model UN:
Matthew Wong and Kristine Sy’s revamp of the Model United Nations club seeks to entice new members on the premise of a politically motivated community that focuses on foreign relations. Inspired by their experiences participating in debate and other public speaking activities, President Wong and Vice President Sy, paired together in creating this group where students could have their voices heard on a number of issues presented in the context of global situations. Students that may be on the fence of deciding whether to join the club rest assured, since the pressures of public speaking will be backed up by the support of your fellow teammates. Along with gaining confidence and a clear voice, members of this club will also be able to brush up on their critical thinking skills as they stay up to date on current global issues. The two also stress that the art of this debate is not just on winning, but rather being able to understand both sides of an argument to reach a point of common interest. Despite the initial intimidation of Model UN’s responsibilities, students will find that the diplomatic skills fostered in this club are founded on the basis of cultural understanding. Through debates, students will be able to use their experience and knowledge on particular countries, along with their teammates to piece together an entire group movement.
As Keppel continues to encourage its students to exceed in their learning. Students would expand on this by acknowledging their affinity for connection through these new clubs this school year. Social events are a crucial part of our individual understanding as we learn new things from others, using our passion and inspiration to inspire personal or large-scale change. The creators of Music Diversity, Snug n’ Stitch, and Model UN all emphasize the importance of communication and team collaboration as we indulge in these projects together.
