Being Behind the Scenes...

Being a part of this graduating class, and being a part of the process of providing school events throughout this year wasn’t as easy as it seemed. This school year was hard enough for us all. On top of that, being in board positions during the 2019-2020 term had its struggles. Many executive members of various 2019-2020 club boards faced many challenges this year. Before I start talking about my experience, I just want to say that I really loved all my positions throughout my time at Middle College, and hope that my love and passion translated into what I helped provide for the school. I think that it is important for all of us to realize the hard work that all the board members put into our clubs and events. Without our board members, we would not have events like MESA Day, Class vs. Class Sports, Game Night, Rallies, Greek Olympics, etc. We would also not have a place to try new crafts, learn to program or dance, or even debate with classmates.

From working on events like Culture Cuisine and Game Night, to making sure that the club’s money was correctly handled (which is a major responsibility), to leading the club meetings, all while trying to keep their grades in check, created so much stress and many sleepless nights. Being a co-director for Table Top, and later Student Government, were two of the hardest positions I have ever taken on. As much as I enjoyed creating these events, I honestly put myself in so much stress and anxiety. On days that we would have Game Night or a dance, I would go throughout the school day making sure we had everything we needed, running around the venue during setup, and sometimes on the brink of crying due to all the stress (if you have been with me at a setup, you might’ve seen that side). It may seem dramatic, but all I wanted was to make our school a better place, with amazing events that would later become people’s lasting high school memories. Despite not hearing a lot of verbal acknowledgments, seeing you guys happy at events, and hearing about how much people enjoyed the events were more than enough recognition for me. My biggest fear was letting the students down and not being up to their standards. This fear is recognizable to probably other former board members too. Especially with board members being in the spotlight of their clubs, some feel as though people are always pointing out the bad, and never recognizing the good they do. For some of us, that started to really take a toll emotionally.

Throughout my years as a co-director, I strived to make events bigger and better each time. But with having that huge vision in mind, I knew that not everyone would be 100% for them too, and I knew that. It’s difficult at first when something you are passionate about gets turned down, but as I gained more experience, I accepted it. Being on a club board takes a level of professionalism. Having board members who are your friends, people you don’t normally agree with, or someone you may not have talked to, all need to have a sense of professionalism when it comes to the clubs. From my experience at MCHS, communication, professionalism, and respect is needed to make a successful club. Many of you guys have probably heard about the “tea” going on in different club boards throughout the years, but why is there tea? If we were all more upfront with each other, while still being respectful, would that change things? In my opinion, I think so, but it is easier said than done, especially when you don’t want to put your friends down.

At the end of the day, all of your board members are human too. We all made mistakes, but we always had our best intentions at heart. I’m not writing this to scare anyone who may want a position in the future. I wanted to shed light on the incredible efforts all board members do in order to give you all the best school year possible. Take some time to thank your board members for their hard work, and for everyone taking on the club boards in 2020-2021, keep working hard and good luck!