Clubs aren’t just part of social agendas anymore. They’re people congregated for purpose and for difference-making. They’re made up of minds that pull together to serve each other and the community they live in.

Lincoln’s clubs have not been left behind. They continuously work to facilitate and contribute to the surrounding welfare of the school community as well as the much broader local area. National Honor Society and the Human Relations Club exemplify youth involvement and contribution to a healthy communal environment.

Students honor academics

National Honor Society has been around for decades. But this year, NHS members orchestrated an event they weren’t accustomed to. It was Lincoln’s turn, among the rotation of high schools, to host the countywide Brain Bowl for both middle schools and high schools.

“The responsibility of hosting the Leon County Brain Bowl Competition is traded from school to school ... This year was our year,” said Spanish teacher Kiki Lykens, one of the club’s sponsors.

The competition took place at Tallahassee Community College and spanned March 13, 14 and 15. NHS members filled designated jobs like “timer,” who made sure the answers were given in the appropriate time limit; “runners,” who were sent to the judges’ room (deemed “Bowl Central”) in the case of question validity; and “scorekeepers,” who recorded points during the competition and announced the winners.

“It was rather stressful trying to accumulate enough people (to participate in hosting), but it all pulled through,” NHS president Shuchita Singh said. Approximately 60 members showed up over the three days to participate in the project.

“I was really impressed with the enthusiasm of the members. NHS has great people in it, and most of us really care about what we are doing,” sergeant-at-arms Anna Norris said.

For this school year, NHS has also participated in themed programs for kids at the Northeast Branch of the LeRoy Collins Library and will be hosting a reception following Convocation. In past years, the club held a multicultural dinner to support Emergency Care Help Organization and had fundraisers for other local services.

“I received so many compliments on our kids (concerning the Brain Bowl competition). The judges and competitors both expressed their appreciation,” Lykens said.

Connecting with one another

Perhaps accomplishing one of the largest service projects ever undertaken at Lincoln was the Human Relations Club, formed in the 2001-2002 school year. Its members are still organizing their goals around creating a positive effect on school and facilitating understanding among students.

“A lot of problems we have between cultures is our lack of information about those cultures,” club sponsor Roshad Thomas said.

Thomas asked senior Markus Bell to lead the club and noted that Bell exemplified what “human relations” encompasses – the interaction with people of all cultures.

“(The club is an) affirmation of my personal goals of being able to understand and accept every person I meet,” Bell said.

The Human Relations Club entered an MTV and Comcast-sponsored “Fight for Your Rights” storyboard contest in 2002 that involved a public service announcement addressing any or all areas of discrimination. In the PSA the characters and the discriminatory words they (the characters) were hearing made transitions from one to the other as Bell’s voice asked the viewers to reflect on how they might feel if they suffered through such torments.

“After the response we got after the local competition, we had a good impression of where we stood, and we thought our chances were favorable,” Bell said.

The local club won the national contest. Bell, Thomas and former Lincoln student Susie VanGaasbeek received a free trip to New York and airplay of their announcement.

The club is planning a Memorial Walk between the track and soccer field with stones engraved with names of Lincoln students who have died.