Alex Carr's The Jaguars' Spot column for Wed., Sept. 23, 2009

Help is on the way!

This week I heard about a really cool club called Teens from Troubled Homes. The club, a support group for kids who might be having personal issues, was founded by VCHS senior Adriana Ariza and her partner, VCHS junior, Joshua Fabian.

“Josh and I are setting up the meetings somewhat like we did last year with another school club, Breaking Down the Walls, which encouraged kids to open up more to those around them.” Adriana said Breaking Down the Walls gave kids something that they all could relate to and helped eliminate cliques and other social barriers.

I asked Adriana why she started the group. She said she sees a lot of kids with lack of confidence issues. “Some kids have problems that tend to tear them down,” she said. “That leaves them with low self-esteem to accomplish all the great things they are capable of.”
If you are interested joining Teens from Troubled Homes, head over to the VC Library any Wednesday from 6-7:00 p.m.

And this club isn’t just for Jags, if any of you Middle School students feel like you might need a little help, Adriana says you are more than welcome to attend to the meetings.

Did you feel the rush?:

Earlier this month VCHS held an event called Club Rush. A lot of great clubs showed up, some old and some new.

Clubs such as CSF (Calif. Scholarship Federation) and NHS (National Honor Society) are there for college info, testing tips and general college strategy.

Just a few others: Drama Club, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Native American Club, Fishing Club, Video Gamers’ Club, Key Club ... you get the idea. There was even a club called Funny Faces which … actually, I don’t really know WHAT they do in that club! Someone from Funny Faces tell me about it!

One VCHS sophomore, Travis Weddington, told me that he isn’t to sure what he wanted to join. He said he missed seeing some of the clubs he saw last year. Nick Vanderpoel, a junior at the high school, told me he was not sure what he wanted to join. He thought CSF would be a good choice when I mentioned it to him, though.

Tell me about it ... an octave higher!:

Let’s face it: Sometimes class can be ... well, let’s say a little less than exciting. To try to combat that, different teachers have their own methods for keeping students’ attention. Teacher Michael Reidy came up with a method that really caught the attention of kids in his Honors Pre-Calc class last week. Reidy had received a helium-filled balloon from ASB that he had set aside while he taught. All of a sudden he leaned over and inhaled the entire balloon ... and continued giving the lecture in a super high-pitched voice as if nothing was wrong! The whole class cracked up then, after a little while, were ready to get back to learning.

Do you have a great item for this column? Tell me about it! Catch me on campus or shoot me an e-mail from my web page: www.carrfamily.com/alex.