Freshmen Swarm to Meet Clubs at 30th Annual Fishbowl

Chloe Boyd, Dreamcatcher Editor-in-Chief| August 18, 2022

  • Grinning in the midst of her performance, Sundancer Claire Petiprin ’23 poses in unison with the rest of her team. “I’m a very volunteer-oriented person, so I think it’s exciting to welcome the new kids to the school. I remember when I was super nervous coming here [as a freshman], so [I am] calming as many nerves as I can,” Petiprin said.

    Daphne Logenbach
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  • Concentrating, the cheer team manages to flip two of its members while lifting each other high into the air. With so much support and extra members for safety, it’s clear to see that the group is well-practiced.

    Daphne Logenbach
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  • Staring in a mix of disbelief and excitement, a group of freshmen boys react to another one of Fishbowl’s captivating events. The various activities had been mostly a combination of collaboration and hype, which drove the energy in the room even higher.

    Daphne Logenbach
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  • Beaming, Nicole Frazier ’23 and Caroline Zhuang ’23 display the signature “S’KO WOOD.” This was just one of many ways the audience showed school spirit during events that were held in the gym.

    Daphne Logenbach
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On Friday, August 12, incoming freshmen attended Fishbowl to learn about getting involved in Westwood’s clubs ahead of the beginning of the school year. Excited freshmen moved between the dozens of tables set up around the main hallways and atrium, coming in swarms with their friends. Crowding in front of tables that interested them, the newcomers stopped to investigate anything that caught their eye.

“[I went to] Canyon Vista,” Pavitra Kamireddy ‘26 said. “I’m very excited [to come to Westwood]. My [electives] are Health Science, Journalism, French, Theater, and I took all IB classes. I see a lot of people I know. I’m most excited about DECA.”

Freshmen attending the event were eager to sign up for anything and everything they were interested in. Since this was the first real, normal Fishbowl in over two years, the amount of interest was surprising. 

“I’m [with] GSA. We’ve actually had a lot [of signatures], surprisingly,” Claire Lawrence ‘23 said. “I was a little bit surprised, because we didn’t do Fishbowl last year, with Covid-19 being all weird and funky. But a lot of people are really nice. There’s actually a lot of people that seem really excited, so that’s cool.”

Since the previous two annual Fishbowl events were affected by Covid-19, the turnout was far beyond even the staff’s expectations. 

“I’m so excited. I’m amazed at how many kids are here, and [how] they all look so happy and excited,” Associate Principal Jessica Rinehart said. “There’s so many smiles, so much energy. Might be because of the candy I can see, maybe we’re sugaring them up. But they look very excited to see their friends and be here. You never know, on a random Friday night, what the turnout’s going to be, so I’m really happy that this many [freshmen] came.”

As a former teacher at Caraway Elementary School, Rinehart recognized a lot of her previous students amongst the crowd.

“A lot of these students had me as their teacher at some point, either when they were in Kinder, or 4th [grade], so I do know a lot of them; or I know their older siblings from being here at Westwood already,” Rinehart said. “It’s awesome to see our students.”

After a tiring high-energy night of walking and talking, the students headed towards the gym for the pep rally and following dance. Many clubs expressed surprise at the turnout and how much interest they had seen in their respective organizations, receiving a lot more attention and signatures than they were expecting. The freshmen brought a new sense of energy and excitement, vamping up the night as the energies of clubs and students built off of each other. The 30th annual Fishbowl was a success, and allowed new students the opportunity to get involved with all the various clubs and organizations that Westwood has to offer.