Since the COVID-19 pandemic, schools across the nation have been looking for safer ways to engage with students outside of class time, which inspired RHS history teacher Charlene Highsaw to create the Good Vibes Club.
“I had a vision to make a club that focused on saying good and positive things about the school, students, teachers, and administration,” Highsaw said.
Currently, the club has seven recurring and active participants who attend sessions online nearly every Friday. The virtual setting seemingly makes showing up to the club easier on a lot of students.
“I think the virtual setting is not so bad,” Highsaw said. “In some ways it is great because it takes away barriers like having to be at the bus stop at a certain time when school ends, or transportation issues.”
Not only is the Good Vibes Club easy to access on Microsoft Teams, but the sentiment of it’s sessions seem to resonate with attendees who had nothing but good things to say about the club.
“To me, the club is a safe space where you can speak about things that bother you or seek advice when you don’t feel like yourself,” freshman Sakai Bradley said. “It represents sanctuary and optimism.”
Bradley said she joined the club after Highsaw’s recommendation and chose to stay because of how much she loved the club’s devotion to helping students remain positive and optimistic, despite the stressful state of the world.
Sophomore Asa Coleman had a similar response.
“This club has shown me how to have a good time and has brought a lot of my mental energy back,” she said. “I feel stress free!”
Coleman also said the club is helping to improve her communication skills.
Sophomore Stevae Crumsey said she is a fan of the club because the conversation doesn’t revolve around academics.
“I think the best thing about this club is the fact that we don’t talk about school,” she said. “It’s a great way to get a break from it all before the weekend starts.”
The Good Vibes Club meets every Friday at 2 p.m. on Microsoft Teams.
