Santiago. Home of Scholars, Achievers, and Champions.

Lovers of Sports, Sports, and wait for it…more Sports.

While Santiago does have an incredible amount of CIF sports teams that do an incredible job representing the school, their praise comes at the expense of the school’s many art programs.

Students look forward every year to the school’s three SPORTS rallies and jump for joy when they see their friends walk onto center stage to announce their upcoming events. In one rally, an average range of 3-6 Sports teams are showcased, while an average of about 0-2 arts groups (other than performance groups) are congratulated for their hard work. As a member of Santiago’s Theatre department, I can count on one hand the amount of times that theatre has received recognition at a rally.

March 17th. Santiago’s Fashion Department puts on a fashion show showcasing dozens of talented designers.If I didn’t have friends in fashion, I would have no idea that there was going to be a show. Morgan Williams, Vice President of Fashion Club, commented that “It is unfortunate that Fashion does not get the support that we deserve because we work all year to make sure that our show comes out the way that we want it to, only for people to disregard all of the effort that we have put in”. Shanelle Huynh, Vice President of Silver Pen Writer’s Club stated that “SPWS has been around for multiple years, yet when I invite people to join, it is usually the first time they have ever heard of it. This year we’ve worked extra hard to get out club out there by making social media accounts and recruiting and club rush. We want people to know that we publish a themed book at the end of every year. Creative Writers are welcome to submit any of their pieces – songs, poems, short stories etc. – to us to be published in the book; and everyone is encouraged to buy our books online.”

Is it not just the arts that seize to receive the recognition that they deserve. When is the last time that the school gave a shout out to Mock Trial? Science Olympiad? Fashion? Silver Pen Writer’s Society? GSA? American Sign Language? Interact? MSA? These organizations put so much time and effort into what they do and deserve to be appreciated.

Santiago’s clubs and organizations do their part in providing the school with an outlet for student’s creativity, so now it is our job to help these groups as much as possible. Retweet posts about their events. Attend their fundraisers. Show love and support. No school would be complete without the arts.