Clubs and organizations provide an opportunity to make new friends and develop self-confidence. Students broaden their cultural exposure, contribute to school and community life, and discover new interests and talents. Each year students create new clubs!
Accents
Founded in 1997, Accents gives advanced dancers an opportunity to expand their
technique. Members choreograph and stage their own ballet, lyrical,
modern, jazz, hip-hop, tap and flamenco dances. The group also competes
with other high school dance groups around the Monterey
Peninsula. Accents and ecco, the student-run a cappella group, perform together each spring.
Admission Tour Guides and Class Guides
Do you love Catalina and want to share it with prospective families?
Tour guides and class guides bring prospective students and parents to
class, give campus tours, and help out with Admission events throughout
the year. These students know the history of the school and, most
important, what makes Catalina great. They are dynamic leaders,
polished public speakers, and genuine, friendly girls. Tour guides and
class guides are Catalina’s best ambassadors.
Amnesty International
Make your voice heard! Amnesty International is an organization founded
to help free prisoners of conscience who are not given their rights
according to the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights. Through
letter-writing and the signing of petitions, Amnesty strives to affirm that Declaration and to raise social consciousness. Members
of organization believe that every human being has basic rights, including the
right to freedom of expression and the right not to be subjected to
cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment or punishment. They work to
ensure that people around the world can exercise these human rights.
Catalinan (Yearbook)
If you really want to be involved in the spirit of Santa Catalina,
apply to be a member of the yearbook staff. Whether you are interested
in photography, editorial, layout design, proofreading,
writing, art, or even business, you should check out the
opportunities that the yearbook has to offer. Students begin working in September to make the book the best it can
be. The Catalinan staff reveals the dedication and theme of the yearbook
to the faculty and student body at a celebration dinner at the end of
May.
Chamber Choir
Do you enjoy singing but don’t feel that you are ready for a large
choir? If so, the Chamber Choir is for you. Members of the choir sing
together at weekly masses in the Chapel. They practice songs once a
week, and the result is beautiful music for each weekly liturgy.
Community Service
While discovering a lot about yourself at Santa Catalina, you will find
that it is equally important to reach beyond yourself and help those
around you. One way to do this is to volunteer in the
community. Each year, students serve the needs of
Dorothy’s Kitchen, Meals on Wheels, Gateway Center for developmentally
challenged adults, the Food Bank of Monterey County, and various
service projects supporting nature and environmental causes at Monterey
parks and beaches. Serving at all of these sites is extremely rewarding
and offers a meaningful way to contribute to the community.
Dumbledore’s Army
Dumbledore’s Army is a club for Harry Potter enthusiasts. It organizes
fun student events with a magical twist. All members are sorted
into one of the four Hogwarts houses. Activities include knitting house
scarves, mastering materials from the movies and books, and playing
Quidditch. The group has about 100 members and is one
of the largest clubs on campus. “We solemnly swear we are up to no
good…”
ecco
Ecco is a student-run a cappella group. Auditions for new members are
held at the beginning of the school year. The repertoire contains a
remarkable spread of musical genres, from “oldies” to pop and more.
Once a year, they perform a joint concert with the Accents dance group. Whenever possible, ecco performs on and off campus.
El Club de Español
El Club de Español provides an opportunity for students interested in
Spanish to connect with others sharing similar interests, practice
their language skills, and participate in cultural activities. Club
members regularly have a conversation table during lunch at which they
practice their Spanish conversation skills. Additionally, the club
plans off-campus excursions related to the cultures of Spanish-speaking
countries, such as eating at a Mexican restaurant or attending a
performance at the Teatro Campesino in San Juan Bautista. The club also
meets once monthly in the evenings during Café Mundi, a gathering of
all students interested in language and culture.
Fashion Club
The Fashion Club is for students who share an interest in fashion and the business of fashion. Students meet to discuss ideas about
fashion and carry out activities associated with the fashion world.
Currently, the students are working on articles for a fashion magazine
that they will publish. The students also host visits from the Fashion
Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM).
Fencing Club
En garde! The fencing club meets weekly with an instructor to learn the
fundamentals of fencing. Santa Catalina has purchased fencing equipment,
and the club is looking forward to a successful future. In the past,
they have demonstrated their outstanding skills at Assembly.
French Club
The French Club meets on a monthly basis and also has a “speaking
table” during lunch on Wednesdays. The students participate in outings
to see films and recently viewed the biography of Coco Chanel. They
also hold immersion evenings at students’ homes and participate in
community service activities during the year. Each year, part of the
community service includes cleaning a historic bronze plaque set in the
courtyard of the Carmel Mission. The plaque commemorates the French
expedition that Laperouse led around the world.
Great Indulgences
Great Indulgences is a club for students who want extra culture in
their lives. Members meet to discuss great works of art,
literature, and film that aren’t necessarily covered in students’
coursework. This year, the club kicked off with a screening of Theodore
Dreyer’s silent masterpiece, The Passion of Joan of Arc, and continued
with a Flannery O’Connor story and Rainer Maria Rilke poetry. Most
works discussed have at least a loose connection to Catholicism, but
the club welcomes people of all religious backgrounds and makes a point
of indulging in "lighter fare" from time to time. They usually have
club members’ own baked goods to enjoy as well!
Knit Wits
Knit Wits is an on-campus club of avid knitters. They love to
share their skills and invite new members at any time. Many of their
projects benefit the local community, including knitting blanket
squares for hospitals and nursing homes and hats for premature babies.
Lamplighter (Student Newspaper)
Each year, student editors and writers produce seven issues of the
Santa Catalina student newspaper, The Lamplighter. They report general
school news as well as special news from each class level. The publication also includes local, national, and international news as it
applies to students, opinion pieces, science and
technology, entertainment, sports, and humor. All students are invited
to apply for staff writer, photographer, and illustrator positions.
There are places on the staff for everyone.
Model UN
Please see the description for the United Nations Student Alliance.
MOSAIC (Literary Magazine)
MOSAIC includes poems, short stories, drawings, and photographs created
by students (and on occasion, faculty). Throughout the year, the
editorial staff collects submissions and reviews them to determine
which to publish. These works are compiled in a book that is printed
and bound.
Operation Smile
Operation Smile is a national organization dedicated to providing
reconstructive surgery and related health care to children and young
adults in developing countries and the U.S. Members sell
baked goods, speak in assembly, and offer collections for this cause.
If you are interested in helping people with facial deformities attain
proper and necessary surgery, please sign up and help.
Pax Christi
This club is affiliated with Pax Christi USA, which is a section of Pax
Christi International, the Catholic peace movement. Pax Christi commits itself to peaceful education and
works towards a more peaceful, just, and sustainable world. It
also helps to sponsor the annual 24-Hour Food Fast to challenge world
hunger by raising money for Catholic Relief Services, the official
overseas relief and development agency of the U.S. Catholic
Community.
Peace & Justice Club
The Peace and Justice Club was founded in the fall of 2001. It serves
as an umbrella organization for five distinctive social action clubs on
campus. We utilize well-established agencies to fulfill our mission:
The United Nations Association; Pax Christi; Amnesty International;
Catholic Relief Services; and other non-profit organizations that share
our concern for environmental, economic, and social justice. Our groups
meet and work together because we have common interests. When
we share our vision, our energy, and our support with one another, we
accomplish far more than what any of the groups (or individuals!) could
do alone. We also have more fun.
PEMDAS (Math Club)
The purpose of the Math Club is to provide students with opportunities
to extend their interest in mathematics and to provide a peer tutorial
service to all Catalina students. Members of the club have the
opportunity to participate in regular meetings that often involve
solving puzzling math problems, helping organize activities to
celebrate mathematics throughout the year, participating in on-campus California
Math League contests each month, serving as peer math
tutors, and taking part in problem-solving sessions in preparation for
the Monterey County Mathletics Competition held in May. All students
are welcome to join the Math Club but are expected to be active
members by attending regular meetings and participating in activities.
R4 (Reduce, Reuse, Recyle, Restore)
R4 is Santa Catalina’s Environmental Club. Our goal is to educate
students and other members of the community about the serious
challenges that face our environment and what we can do to help create
the positive change that is essential for our planet. We are in the
process of revolutionizing our recycling program on campus, curbing our
energy use, and growing some of our own food in our beautiful organic
garden. We work with faculty, staff, and administration to make our
campus more environmentally sustainable for the 21st century. In
addition, R4 members help to plan special Earth Day activities to
raise awareness of environmental issues.
Reverb
Reverb is a club for students interested in singing, songwriting, and
playing different musical instruments. Students meet to share their
songs and skills and work together to improve upon their work and
performances. Ultimately, club members perform an
impressive annual show for their friends and families.
Santa Catalina Children’s Fund
For the past 24 years, Santa Catalina students, administrators,
faculty, and staff have supported needy children from around the world
through the Santa Catalina Children’s Fund. Through three agencies,
Childfund (formerly Christian Children’s Fund), S.O.S. Children’s
Villages, and The Sisters of Charity, the school fund supports children in
many underdeveloped countries and areas across the U.S. Their
monthly support provides nutritious food, schooling, medical care, and
other community services. Whenever possible, they try to do more for
these children. In recent years, they have supported several Zuni
children in New Mexico as well as students in a Catholic school in
Tanzania.
Senior Prefects
Prefects at Santa Catalina serve as strong role models for their fellow
students. They have a unique opportunity to help mold the Santa
Catalina community. Prefects help supervise study hours, sort mail, and
are responsible for dinner check-in and the supervision of chapel
singing. Additionally, they help Residential Faculty maintain the
well-being of the dorms. As strong leaders, prefects help foster an
environment where fairness and kindness are valued among students.
Spiritual Life Committee
Santa Catalina celebrates religious diversity and embraces the true meaning of the word "catholicity," the concept of being and welcoming of all. The Spiritual Life Committee facilitates spiritual development and encourages all students to participate in the liturgy, community service, retreats, and prayer. Headed by a student-elected religious coordinator, the group is supported by a religious studies faculty member.
Student–Alumnae Organization (STAR)
All three components of this organization enable girls to volunteer on
behalf of Santa Catalina. Student ushers assist in the Performing Arts Center, and members
of the Reunion Committee prepare for and act as hostesses at the
annual Alumnae Reunion Weekend. Tour guides serve to welcome visitors to campus and are the first link a new student
has to Santa Catalina. STAR leadership joins the Alumnae Association Board of Directors' meetings as student liaisons.
Student–Faculty Senate
Are you interested in developing leadership skills? Do you have good
ideas? Are you a good motivator? If so, you will probably want to run
for a Student-Faculty Senate office. Elected class officers or representatives help during weekly Journey meetings, help plan class and school events, and much more. These officers are the backbone of the senate — and the student body. The four Journey class coordinators serve as faculty representatives and student leadership mentors. The group as a whole serves as an instrumental link between students and the administration. If you want to become an effective force in school life, then Student–Faculty Senate might be for you.
United Nations Student Alliance
This club works with the United Nations Association of the USA (UNA-USA) to
broaden and deepen an understanding of the UN system and to promote
efforts that advance the goals of the UN Charter through education and
advocacy. UNA-USA consistently examines new global challenges with a
determined sense of hope and opportunity. Student Alliance is a forum
through which students take part in this examination and are presented
with the opportunity to act as informed global citizens. They also work
to encourage public support for strong U.S. leadership in the UN. The
club networks with the Monterey Bay chapter of the UNA-USA, the second
largest chapter in the nation, and encourages students to participate
in major local events sponsored by this group.