Brooklyn Tech is a school known for its rigorous coursework, but that isn’t the whole story at Tech. With over two hundred active student clubs for over six-thousand students, student organizations are arguably some of the most vital parts of our school. They give Technites an escape from work, and a community that they can join to meet others with similar interests.

In the words of Anoushka Tripathy (‘23), a member of Horizons Literary & Art Magazine and The Publishing Club, “I see clubs as a part of the school and give them the same importance because academics isn’t all there is to being a student at Tech.”

Club leaders are the beating hearts of these cherished student organizations. Recruitment is a larger part of club leadership. Consequently, many clubs have found a way to publicize their meetings through social media and flyers to reach as many prospective members as possible.

Samridhi Bajaj (‘23), the president of both the Crime Scene Investigation Club and the Bollywood Bhangra Club, explained, “Most of the people that have joined my clubs have found out from friends who saw the club on social media. The best way to get members is to share posts with as many people as you can about the club, including on social media, so that even if they don’t want to join, they might know someone who wants to.”

Janet Gao (‘23), the president of the Badminton Club, shares this sentiment. She elaborated, “I usually just publicize through Instagram, or I encourage my current club members to tell their friends.”

Alisa Vazgryna (‘23), the co-secretary of BTHS H.O.P.E., stated that spreading the word about one’s club is very beneficial. “Since [BTHS H.O.P.E.] has been a club for such a long time and has hundreds of members, it’s one of the first clubs people think of when they want to join a volunteering-oriented club, and that helps a lot,” Vazgryna noted. She also attributes the club’s success to the fact that its executive board is large, so they have many people reposting information about events that clubs hold which attracts much attention from students.

Retaining membership can also be hard at a school as academically rigorous and stressful as Brooklyn Tech. Gao contended, “To keep my members, I keep them updated on all events and think of new ideas for them to participate in.”

Being a good listener is a trait of successful club leaders. “The biggest part is making the environment comfortable,” Bajaj emphasized. “Especially since both of my clubs are not academic and we can plan everything and allow for member input. Take suggestions from members on activities.”

“I think the best way to get members and keep them is by being consistent and always being available. We have events every month and our members can rely on us for events that can earn them service hours every year. We also make sure to stay on top of responding to emails and always being kind to our members,” Vazgryna noted.

Leading clubs seems to be especially rewarding, as Bajaj explained, “My favorite thing would be connecting with the members through the activities I do in each club and meeting new people through clubs especially because they’re joining something that I also have an interest in.”

Vazgryna also shared that being a club executive has helped her in many ways. “When I was an event coordinator last year, I got to attend a lot of cool events and met a lot of really nice people. When it comes to H.O.P.E. specifically, we’re a club whose goal is helping our community so being an exec means that I am helping the club achieve its goal and helping people. I also think that being a H.O.P.E. exec has helped me gain a lot of skills that I know will benefit me in the future such as contacting organizations and organizing charitable events.”

For Gao, who leads a sports-oriented club, the real benefit is serving her members. “I love overseeing the growth of my members in every way, and it’s very rewarding at the end when all your hard work pays off.”