FITCHBURG — The power of change is currently happening at Memorial Middle School.
And that change is ongoing thanks to four 8th-grade leaders who saw a want and desire for volleyball at their school.
Thanks to the changemaking efforts of Memorial students, Lanah-Lee Clifford, Aubree Namsaly, Alanis Rivera-Colon and Kyra Colon Rodriguez, the “Memorial Middle School Volleyball Club” has launched for students in grades 5-8 every Friday after school for 10 weeks.
“What I think they have learned the most is they can do something for themselves and put it in their school,” said club advisor and Memorial teacher Brittany Morrison. “It doesn’t always have to be teacher-led or administrator-led. If they are interested in a club or after-school activity and you don’t see it offered, go to your principal or go to your teacher and ask how to do it and we will help you. This is exactly how this came about.”
The Volleyball Club has been an extremely big hit, too, despite the students’ worry when they initially began brainstorming this initiative.
“We didn’t know how many people were going to want to do this,” said Namsaly. “We didn’t know if there would be 20 people or like 5. We didn’t want it to be like 5 people and we couldn’t play.”
There has been way more interest than they could have imagined, however. In three weeks that the club has been gathering from 2-3:15 p.m. in the gymnasium, the numbers have been eye-popping with 58, 75 and 65 students, respectively, participating.
“When we saw how many people wanted to play, we were like ‘we made something happen,’” said Rivera-Colon.
Morrison has been impressed with the passion these students have for wanting to make positive change in their school.
“The passion that these kids have of wanting to start a club for themselves make me feel passionate about a sport that I don’t have that much knowledge in,” Morrison said. “Getting them here every week and practicing and seeing what I expected to be 20 people on the first Friday and we had 58, it’s crazy. It’s been fun. The little kids are building skills and the older kids, especially from Puerto Rico and the Dominican that have experience, really want to play. Now they see that there’s an opportunity in high school to try out for the high school. It’s keeping them interested and feeling like they belong to something because this is fun for them.”
Spreading the love of the game, acceptance and inclusion are a few of keys in getting this club up off the ground and into action with a bump, set and a spike.
“We were thinking that we wouldn’t be lonely when we go up (to the high school) if other people wanted to play, so that we would have friends when we went up there, too,” Namsaly said. “We’d also have better chemistry with the team because we’d know some people already.
“When people are shy they don’t want to play sports. But when they try this sport maybe they would start liking it and get into more sports and start socializing more?”
What stands out about the volleyball club after the first three weeks?
“Just how much everyone gets along and how much better they are getting,” Namsaly said. “They go from not really being able to hit the ball to starting to play.”
The club took action with an email and then a petition of signatures from other students who wanted to participate. There were talks with Memorial Principal Brittney Lavoie and Fitchburg Public Schools Athletic Director Craig Antocci, and also coordinating gym time due to any potential conflicts with basketball.
“All the behind-the-scenes things that adults do, they now know on their own,” Morrison said.
The athletic department is supporting the venture with some financial backing through the athletic budget along with some manpower. Hannah Vailancourt, the girls’ JV coach and boys’ head coach, has been attending with some volleyball athletes to provide instruction and mentoring.
“This student-driven initiative is a model for future programs district wide,” Antocci said. “Going forward, it is clear to me that there is a real demand for more athletic offerings at the elementary- and middle-school level, and it is my job to facilitate in any way possible. I want students to know that when they speak, we listen.”
Change is currently happening at Memorial, thanks to four determined students.
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February 16, 2020 at 03:25AM
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Power of change showing at Memorial Middle School - Sentinel & Enterprise
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