This year, the quad is a more active place at lunch almost every day, weather permitting.
As students rush to and from the lunch lines, The Killers’ upbeat hit “Mr. Brightside” blasts daily from the speakers, mingling with the sound of students laughing together. In the center of the quad, groups play cornhole, spikeball and mini-golf — next to the redwood deck, students of all skill levels play volleyball while occasional tables host card games and giant-sized Uno, among other games.
These events are largely the work of first-year activities director Mark Higashioka.
With the help of student Leadership class students, a class he teaches during second period, Higashioka has also pushed clubs, traditionally low-visibility, to contribute more to the school. Many clubs have started lunch events, such as the origami-making event hosted by Origami Club, a blind cookie test by Food Club, puzzles by Puzzle Club and more.
Using game equipment from the school and even some from Higashioka’s personal collection, lunch activities typically attract a handful of students in the quad daily. He believes that by encouraging participation in physical activities, students can engage socially with their peers and make new friends while de-stressing.
“I believe that if you have an activity like cornhole, it opens up the conversation. And physically, if you’re not in PE and you don’t play a sport, you sit down all day,” Higashioka said. “Being physically active is so important for your health — not just for your body, but your mind.”
Higashioka has also started and helped with larger events during lunch and after school, including a spikeball tournament, March Madness, flag football, intramural basketball, a 3-pointer contest and class socials for each grade, most of which are new to campus this year.
So far, he and the Leadership class have organized a Freshman Social and Sophomore Social earlier this year, both of which attracted nearly 200 students. Higashioka says the socials also aim to help Leadership students become more active in their community and work directly with fundraising. During the weeks of March Madness, the event attracts around 40 students to the gym each lunch, including players and audience. Most recently, the school social on May 20 attracted over 100 students after school and featured food trucks.
Higashioka started these events when he noticed the academically focused student body at SHS.
“It’s my belief, and I have support from the admin and PTSO leadership team, that school is more than just academics. It’s not just about developing your mind and preparing stuff for the future, but it’s about developing the overall teenager,” Higashioka said.
In the future, he plans to start another lunch activity that would revolve around starting conversations with other students and improving interpersonal and social skills, which is not explicitly taught in school curriculums.
Higashioka says that physical activities and positive peer engagement is key in developing students and creating a supportive environment, rather than a competitive one.
“This is a very academically rigorous school, and there’s a lot of pressure to be successful at a very high level. My ultimate goal is for [students to say] ‘yeah, I worked really hard, but I had fun. When I went to school, I made a new friend. I feel like I have a good group that I belong to,’” Higashioka said. “When I hear students talk, all it is is that I went to school, I studied hard and came back. There’s so much more to school than just that.”
