Bothell is known for our KingCo-dominating football team, our state championship-winning cheer team, our hugely successful Science Olympiad team, and our consistently exuberant school spirit. One of Bothell High School’s lesser known strengths is our numerous and diverse clubs. Whether you’re passionate about STEM, music, foreign language, or even Just Dance, there is truly something for everyone. BHS club advisors work around the clock to support our many clubs to make sure that they run smoothly and are a positive experience for club members! 

This year, they even made sure to coordinate what times each club meets so students can participate in multiple clubs. In theory, one student could join every BHS club if they had time. Existing club members and advisors gush about how much they love their clubs and how much they look forward to them each week.

 So why is club membership at a perpetual low each year? In the past, club officers and advisors have reported difficulty in recruiting new members to their clubs. Many clubs are even forced to shut down due to a lack of participants. 

FBLA president Tanvi Ranganathan (‘22) has been involved with FBLA since freshman year and has been on the executive board for 2 years in a row. “This year we have about 55 members and last year we had about 45…” she tells me. At first, that seemed like an above-average number of members for a Bothell club, but then she followed with a sucker punch, “…and North Creek’s FBLA has about 150 members, they also have more clubs in general”. How are North Creek’s clubs, a school that has been open for only a few years, so much more established than Bothell’s clubs, the oldest school in the Northshore School District?

 After being involved with several BHS clubs, I’ve noticed that officers have to jump through hoops to make sure their meetings can operate without too many setbacks. Tanvi explained to me several issues that they have had to tackle in the past couple years, one being “…it took a couple months of really hard work to find a club advisor”. 

Although most students can’t relate to the issues involving internal operations, in the past, club time has been more or less of a headache for everyone. Last year, Bothell had “Club Time” every Friday for a short 25 minutes, although many Club Times were taken away to make room for assemblies and altered schedules. 

Despite these hurdles, a sizable number of BHS students are involved with more than one club― how does that work if there’s only one club time? It doesn’t. Tanvi says, “students had to make a decision on which club they wanted to attend” or they could do what I did, spend 12 minutes in one club then sprint across campus and catch the end of another club meeting. How can clubs function to their full potential if they are only allowed to meet a couple times a month for less than half an hour?

It is no secret that Bothell’s community revolves around sports. Football season is arguably the highlight of the school year for a large amount of the student body. Just last year, the school refinished the gym and had the tennis courts redone over the summer.  To clarify, the district paid for these renovations. If clubs were provided with the same amount of resources and opportunity as athletics, would it encourage students to be more involved with the club community? 

With academic and business focused clubs like FBLA and DECA, students are not as interested and hesitate to join. Tanvi wants to encourage any curious students to give FBLA and other clubs a shot, “[academic] clubs have many benefits… you acquire skills that you need to perform well in the workforce”. Don’t be afraid to join a so-called “academic” club, “it’s not just about the brains… that’s just not it, there’s something for everyone”, Tanvi says, besides, it looks great on college applications too. With being online this year, students have the privilege of information and accessibility. If anything, this is the perfect chance for students who are normally busy with sports or other activities to get involved with Bothell’s awesome clubs! 

Editor’s Statement: This article has been edited. Some quotes have been redacted. The Catamount remains committed to reporting with integrity.