EXTRACURRICULAR PROGRAMS, CLUBS, AND ELECTIVES
4H: Beth Hartmann Art Club: Paula Currie
Drama Club: Payten Boyd Math Team: Beth Hartmann
Science Olympiad: Lisa Odom Chess Club: Joel Dixon
Student Council: Kala Batts Yearbook: Kala Batts
Monday Elective Classes (year-round)
Each fall and spring semester we poll our students to determine their interests; we then offer a wide variety of elective courses based on their responses. Among our popular and unique Friday classes are Archery, Herb Gardening, Culinary Explorations, Show Choir/Voice Techniques, Drama, and Survival Skills, but we have had offerings in subjects as far-ranging as BBQ/Outdoor Cooking, Twenty-First Century Life Skills, Oceanography, Painting, Architecture, and many more! If YOU have an interest or new idea that you would like to see us offer, let us know and we will do our best to make it happen. We also LOVE to have parents teach elective classes, sharing their hobbies, skills, and passions with our students.
Art Club – Paula Currie (year-round)
Any and all students who love to draw, paint, and create are welcome to come hone their artistic skills and scratch that creative itch! There are no fees associated with this activity. Meetings will be every Tuesday lunchtime.
Best of Texas Academic Contests – Department Heads (spring)
This is an annual online practice contest for high school students. Students may participate in Math, Biology, Chemistry, Social Studies, and/or Spelling and Vocabulary. Each contest will consist of three rounds of tests in each subject. The contest begins in January, with two weeks in which to give each test. Tests will be given during school hours, and there is no need to do any outside studying to participate in this competition. There are no fees associated with this activity.
Math Team – Beth Hartmann (year-round)
Do you keep it real? Do you think there is a fine line between numerator and denominator? Do you think that life without Geometry is pointless? Well then, the Northstar Math Team is for you! The Math Team is open to all Northstar students with a passion for numbers. We will compete in Math Counts, the Calculus Bowl, and Best of Texas contests, and we will work on the math events for Science Olympiad. We will have fun and it will look great on your resume. We will meet on one morning a week (TBD) from 8:00am to 8:30am. Please join us!
National Honor Society – Sarah McConnell (year-round)
The National Honor Society and National Junior Honor Society are nationwide organizations that recognize and promote scholarship, leadership, character, service, and citizenship in middle- and high-school students. Membership is extended by invitation from a Faculty Committee in the spring. A detailed description of the selection criteria can be found in your Student Handbook. Annual dues are $20 and each year the students also design a new t-shirt. We meet once a month on Thursdays during lunch and engage in several service projects each year that sometimes require participation outside of school hours. Students are also required to attend an after-hours induction ceremony each spring.
Science Olympiad – Lisa Odom (year-round)
Science Olympiad, the largest MS/HS science competition in the US, is an annual interscholastic science competition consisting of a series of 23 team events in middle- and high-school divisions. Every year the events are rotated to reflect the ever-changing nature of genetics, earth science, chemistry, anatomy, physics, geology, mechanical engineering, and technology. By combining events from all disciplines, Science Olympiad encourages a wide cross-section of students to get involved. Emphasis is placed on active, hands-on group participation. Practices begin at the start of the school year on Friday mornings, and the frequency and intensity of practices increases as the date of the regional competition approaches (TBD- one Saturday in Feb or March @Tarleton University or TCC). Middle school students are required to participate in at least one event at the competition; participation is optional in the years following. There are no fees associated with this activity. Parents are encouraged to help coach teams– no experience necessary!
Scientific Research and Design (SRD) – Byron Appelt (year-round)
SystemsGo is an innovative high school (10th grade and up) rocketry/aeroscience curriculum that uses project-based learning to teach science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). It also develops skills in teamwork, problem-solving, and leadership and encourages careers in the engineering industries. This program is open to all students starting in their sophomore year. It is broken into three classes (SRD I, II, and III), which are embedded in the weekly schedule at Northstar and meet twice a week.
It really is rocket science! Students in the first year of the program design and develop rockets to take a one pound payload to an altitude of one mile while more advanced students attempt to achieve transonic flight while staying under a flight ceiling of 13,000 feet. Students must commit some outside hours to developing and building the rockets and traveling to Jacksboro or Fredericksburg to launch it each year. There are no fees to participate in the program but students must pay their own travel expenses.
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Student Council – Kala Batts and Lisa Odom (year-round)
The Northstar Student Council provides an opportunity for students to develop leadership skills by organizing and implementing school activities such as dances, homecoming events, and internal service projects. It also encourages all students to take ownership in their school by giving voice to their needs, desires, and concerns. Grade-level representatives are elected in the fall of each year while officer elections occur in the spring. There are small annual dues (~$25) for Student Council and member students design and purchase a shirt each year. High school members also have the (optional) opportunity to attend a state conference on leadership in the spring.
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Yearbook – Kala Batts (year-round)
Any interest in photography or graphic design? Got school spirit and love to show it? Come and join the yearbook team! Meetings will be once or twice a month in the afternoon. There are no fees associated with this activity. Just bring a great attitude and a commitment to Northstar’s legacy!