Clubs find new ways to operate as they face challenges brought by Covid-19

The Covid-19 pandemic has caused numerous changes at school this year, especially in clubs and the typical activities and operations of those clubs.

Many clubs have had to make changes to how they operate, and make adjustments for how they previously participated in activities.

Since the virus has halted all larger gatherings, clubs had to find alternate ways to meet rather than in person.

“Model UN has been moved online and only meets every other week for the first semester,” Model UN President Jackson Looney said.

Larger clubs, such as Key Club, have had to face the difficulty of choosing between in-person or online meetings.

“Covid-19 has moved all of our meetings online, which is a big learning curve,” Key Club President Conor O’Neill said. “At first, we had some technical difficulties learning how to navigate online meetings. However, after a couple of tries we got the hang of it.”

Clubs have also had to cancel many activities and events that they would usually have had in normal years and find new ways to continue to operate.

“One of the biggest changes we’ve seen this year is some of our biggest events such as Fantasy of Trees and Winter Formal have been cancelled,” O’Neill said. “To make sure we are staying active, we have started participating in other Covid-19 safe programs such as mailing cards to hospitals.”

Added senior Improv co-captain Kena Holmes: “We can’t do live shows for at least the first semester, but we are actually going to be writing and performing comedy skits that we can record instead. This will be a reformed way of sharing our group’s creativity during the pandemic.”

To avoid the spread of the virus, clubs had to also cancel field trips for at least the first semester that they have gotten to take in the past. 

“No field trips for the first semester is a double-edged sword,” Looney said. “On one hand, it gives us a lot of more time to train and prepare our members for the spring.

“On the other hand, it means we do not get to go to Chattanooga in November, something we always look forward to doing.” 

Club recruitment has also been affected by the virus, making it more difficult to gain members with less in person interaction and the club fair being moved virtual.

“[Auditions] will be a little different, since we have to practice social distancing, but we still get to recruit some newbies,” Holmes said. 

Added Looney: “Covid-19 has affected recruitment and put it on hold for the summer due to the murkiness of the situation. We have had a few new members express interest recently, so let’s see how that goes.” 

Bearden clubs have persevered through this tough time and have continued to function as well as they had in past years. 

“Overall, our productivity has not changed, and we are hoping to keep all of our members happy and active during this uncertain time,” O’Neill said.