Our mission at Support My Club is not simply to get clubs and sports the items they need to succeed. It’s greater than that. It’s also raising awareness of the important role extracurriculars play in the lives of many high school students.

We recently came across these 8 impactful statements that helped remind us why we do what we do.*

• [A] growing body of research says there is a direct link between afterschool activities and graduating from high school, going to college, and becoming a responsible citizen.

• The data also show that kids with the highest test scores are the most active in afterschool activities. Two-thirds of kids in the top quarter of test takers played sports, for example, compared to less than half in the lowest quarter.

• People who are persistent and passionate about something, whether cross-country or baton twirling or spelling bees, will carry over that enthusiasm to other parts of their lives.

• Kids who are involved in clubs and sports spend an extra couple of hours a week with an adult, usually a role model like a drama director or a football coach.

• Grades improve not because of what kids are learning in the video club, but because the video club is making them enjoy school more, so they show up more often, find a circle of like-minded friends, and become more engaged in school.

• ...extracurriculars teach a lot of the skills you need as an adult: time management, leadership, self-discipline, and persistence for doing work that isn’t extrinsically motivated.

• Kids who have a significant involvement in an extracurricular activity have a capacity for focus, self-discipline, and time management... lacking in kids who just went through school focused on their GPA.

• The National Center for Education Statistics, in its own analysis of the longitudinal or NELS data, found that high-school seniors who were involved in school activities were less likely to cut class and play hooky than kids who weren’t involved. Three times as many had a GPA of 3.0 or higher; twice as many scored in the top quarter on math and reading tests.

Providing students the resources they need to excel in their after-school activities means equipping them with tools they need to be successful later on in life as well.

“Honestly, the place that best prepared me for college was the hardwood court of men’s varsity basketball. That court taught me hard work, sacrifice, teamwork, humility…and leadership.” - Andrew Snow, a University of Michigan senior and pre-law major.*

Arizona has shocking dropout rates and it’s essential to keep teens engaged and connected to their passions in order to reverse that trend. We know what a big role the clubs and sports teams we were involved in during high school played in our lives, and that’s why we do what we do.

*All stats and quotes included are from an article entitled the Academic Value of Non-Academics.(http://educationnext.org/academic-value-of-non-academics)