Are you sad that there are no interscholastic competitions this fall? Upset that you have fewer chances to meet people who enjoy playing the same sports? No worries! Kent has an alternative program that supplements for the loss of Saturday competitions and promotes school spirit, teamwork, creativity, and competition. Introducing Kent Clubs! 

Under the leadership of Mr. Wells, a team worked this summer to reinvigorate Kent Clubs, which had been a hallmark of the Kent experience in the second half of the last century. With weekly events for hundreds of students and faculty members, Kent Clubs requires lots of organizational effort and an all-hands-on-deck approach, but Mr. Wells believes it’s worth it: “sports are a great medium to teach kids the lessons of life, passion commitment, dealing with adversity, and selfless leading.”

After a lot of planning work, the program finally kicked off earlier this fall in a sorting ceremony reminiscent of Harry Potter, in which the entire Kent community was divided into four clubs: the Algos, Housatonics, Macedonians, and Skiffs, all names which were derived from the landscape around Kent. 

A tradition since the 1950s, Kent Clubs lost its place in the early 2000s as interscholastic sports became prominent and kids became busier, but the new 2020 version features a lot of new aspects that will make for a rewarding experience for all. Many teachers and students are responsible for promoting, planning events on campus, and making decisions about what the rewards will be. Additionally, the Club has entered the digital age with an app, “Superfan,” where students can sign in not just to club activities but to Blue Key events to earn automatic points for themselves and their clubs. The plan is for everything to culminate in a huge ceremony at the end of the year to award a trophy to whichever team has the most number of points. 

Every Saturday at 2:00 pm, students participate in one of sixteen sports as a fun competition with their friends. The feedback, so far, has been great. “It’s a magnificent idea…I was able to meet new students and be closer to the ones that I did not have enough time to meet,” says Taehan Kim ‘21.

Club activities remain fun even as the same safety protocols in effect all over campus remain in place. Everyone wears masks, stays socially-distanced, and wipes everything down when finished. During Phase I of Kent School rules, students were not allowed to share balls to avoid the risk of getting sick, but currently, in Phase II, ball-passing is allowed. The Superfan app has the added bonus of helping with contact tracing if necessary, meaning that students can have fun while staying safe. 

The commitment, potential, love, and energy of the Kent community is clearly demonstrated through this program. Students have the chance to bond and meet new people, burn off energy, and participate in an important aspect of our community life.