The advent of Power Hour has extended students’ lunch time to 53 minutes, allowing students to eat leisurely, visit teachers during office hours, complete homework, and participate in a host of clubs and student organizations. In previous years, club meetings have been held outside of school hours, forcing students to come early to school or stay late in order to participate. The majority of clubs now take place during either Power Hour Block A or B, dramatically increasing the ease of participation.

Speech and Debate coach Jessica Hartman appears excited at the growth in involvement.

“I am thrilled about the increased participation,” Hartman said. “[Speech and Debate] is something we at West Shore are particularly good at, and there are a lot of students who can now take advantage of [Power Hour] because the timing is more convenient.”

Speech and Debate had a mere nine competitors last year, but thus far has already had 37 students sign up as interested to compete. This significant spike has caused meetings to become crowded, and students have resorted to standing, sharing seats, and sitting on the ground.

Student Government Association President Hannah Montgomery has mixed feelings about the sudden augment of club participation.

“More members has helped with getting volunteers, but hasn’t made much of a difference for overall club participation,” Montgomery said. “The people who want to help do, and those who don’t, don’t. One concern that I think exists for all clubs is that some members adjust try to fill their resumes instead of being passionate about the clubs they’re in.”

The new ease of joining student organizations has certainly permitted significant involvement on campus, as it removes the additional effort of coming to school for additional times. The motives of students for joining, however, will remain a mystery.