Prep’s Club periods offer students a wide variety of activities in which to immerse themselves and develop interests outside the strictly academic realm. Clubs are increasingly student-led, showcasing the passions and interests of individual members of our student body and offering up great leadership opportunities for students of all grades. The selection varies from year to year based on student interests and initiative, and students are encouraged to contact their division head if they are interested in starting a new club or after-school activity. Among the clubs and activities you might expect to find in any given year:
Mindfulness Club
In Mindfulness Club, students will focus on compassion, gratitude, and kindness practices, as well as relational mindfulness practices relating to interpersonal connection and mindful speaking and listening. Students will spend as much time outside in nature as the weather will permit. They will also participate in guided practices, some light reading, and lots of time to refresh and restore.
Model United Nations
In Model UN, students spend the majority of the fall semester club time preparing for a series of inter-school debates in November that authentically simulate the UN General Assembly and other multilateral bodies. Students step into the shoes of ambassadors from UN member states to debate current issues on the organization’s vast agenda. Student “delegates” in Model UN prepare draft resolutions, plot strategies, negotiate with supporters and adversaries, resolve conflicts, and navigate the UN’s rules of procedures – all in the interest of mobilizing “international cooperation” to resolve problems that affect almost every country on earth. This club is a great fit for students interested in eventual careers in international foreign affairs or for students who want to sharpen their research, debate, teamwork, and negotiation skills.
Speech & Debate
Speech and Debate is a year-long activity that involves intense preparation and rigorous competition all over New Mexico, a National tournament in Arizona, and the National Speech and Debate Championships. Events include several different kinds of debate, public speaking, and competitive performance. Speech and Debate trains students to be comfortable speaking in front of others, how to form cohesive and coherent arguments, and deliver them articulately.
Spoken Word
Getting lost in words is difficult when you’re encouraged to look for the ‘right’ path or answer in something so vast and fluid. Spoken word and hip-hop seem like wide-open spaces in comparison.
Come release your inner emcee
with lyrical, spherical, ever-moving poetry.
Talent is not a necessitate,
being brave is the only prerequisite.
And if you just want to get lost in the words and the beats,
Then spoken word club will be saving your seat.
Stress-Free Shakespeare
Through board games, movies, and hilarious adaptations of Shakespeare’s work, experience and perform Shakespeare monologues and scenes in a fun and stress-free environment. Speak Shakespeare, use a sword, dance a “coronato,” fight like a villain, swear like an Elizabethan, and drink from tankards and flagons! In this club learn that the Bard is not so hard. There will even be a stage combat workshop.