White County High School earning the national designation of a Beta School of Distinction after growing its club enrollment by 10 percent over the last year.
Principal Greg Wilson said the school is one of fewer than 3,000 clubs nationwide to receive the honor out of more than 10,000 eligible organizations. Wilson said the achievement reflects the commitment of the student body to maintain high academic standards while increasing their presence in the local community.
“It makes us proud,” Wilson said. “You know, it especially makes me proud that, that our students have committed to working hard, helping the community, and in not only working hard for their community service hours, but working hard in the classroom.”
Wilson said the club currently includes over 20 percent of the total student population at the high school. Social Studies Teacher and Beta Club Sponsor Laurel Farley said the organization is an academic service group that requires students to maintain an overall A average to remain eligible for invitation each year.
“I think just our overall togetherness,” Farley said. “I mean, we were eating all of our meals together in the hallways of Opryland Hotel. We, the kids that competed in, like public speaking, had a room full of White County High School Betas supporting them.”
Farley said the club achieved the necessary growth by opening membership to the freshman class for the first time. Wilson said the increased involvement is driven by a wide variety of community activities that allow students to take ownership of their leadership development.
“I believe that, uh, one of the ways they grow is being able to interact with other people and adults and also to be able to, uh, look at what it does for our communities, our nonprofits and everything that, you know, goes back to, uh, helping White County,” Wilson said.
Farley said the club set a school record last year by recording 7,853 community service hours, ranking them as the number one high school in Tennessee for service. Farley said projects included food drives, a 4,000-pound shoe donation for poverty-stricken regions, and a specialized Easter egg hunt designed for community members with special needs.
“They were able to have their wheelchairs, um, out in the hunt, and it was really special,” Farley said. “And the kids were a huge part of that. They’re the ones painting faces and making the snow cones and pushing the wheelchairs, and they donated all the eggs as well.”
Wilson said the school aims to grow the club to at least 250 members during the upcoming school year.
