At Fossil Ridge High School, we encourage students to get involved in one or more of the many opportunities we have in Student Activities: sports, clubs, music, the arts, service organizations, etc. Student activities develop core social and emotional skills and are a great way to connect students to our school. Participating in student activities reduces dropout rates, increases standardized test scores, boosts GPA, promotes college and career success, develops social and emotional skills, and ultimately leads students to make better choices (Journal of Educational Research, Schreiber and Chambers, 2002).
- Simply participating in any club or activity increases a student’s chances of college enrollment. But the odds of enrollment double if a student joins a group with an average GPA that’s one point higher than his or hers. (Gibbs, Erickson, Dufur, and Miles, 2014)
- A study found that participation in after-school activities in 8th grade boosted standardized reading scores by 2% and math scores by 2.9%. In 10th grade, reading scores went up by 4% and math scores went up by 5.7%. (Schreiber and Chambers, 2002)
- Students who participate in at least one activity in each year of high school are 70% more likely to attend college, 60% more likely to vote, and 80% more likely to volunteer than those who only participate in some years. (Zaff et al, 2003)
- Students who participate in just one or two extracurricular activities are 2X less likely to smoke tobacco, 2.5X less likely to smoke marijuana, and 50% less likely to drink alcohol. (Elder, Lever-Dunn, Wang, Nagy, and Green, 2000)
The bottom line: when a student participates, they are virtually guaranteed to earn better grades, go to college, and make better life decisions! So what are YOU waiting for? Pick out a club, or two, or three and GET INVOLVED TODAY!