At the beginning of the school year, Kaitlin Duffy ‘26 was sparked with an interest in developing her own club, the Indigenous People’s Club, a culture club with an aim to share Indigenous history and traditions. 

“I feel like everyone should have a place at this school,” Duffy said. “[Joining a culture club is] a good way to get introduced to different ways and get acclimated [to the culture]. It’s a good way to get to know people and feel like you’re a part of something.”

Duffy worked to get AP Human Geography teacher Amanda Ameling to sponsor the club and was offered help developing the club from students Emily Kienzle ‘26, Blake McCracken ‘26, and Kennedy Campbell ‘26.

“I think it’s so amazing that students here are using their voice and showing their interest and their passion by taking those steps to go through that process of requesting the creation of a new club,” Director of Equity and Belonging Jennifer Rowe said. “I’m not sure that I’ve seen anyone in the districts that I know in terms of culture clubs having one connected to Indigenous people and communities. To me, it’s very exciting having these different types of culture clubs that allow you to learn.”

Though the club has yet to be approved, during meetings, Duffy plans to have club members read or view different Indigenous artifacts, learn about the cultures of different tribes, and watch historical documentaries about Indigenous culture. 

“In a lot of the history classes at LT, it’s very surface-level learning,” Duffy said. “I hope to dig deeper into the different Indigenous cultures because I don’t know much about my tribe, but I hope they [club members] will learn more about [Indigenous history], not just about the surface level learning.”

After getting 20 signatures on a petition and filling out a Google form giving information about the club’s purpose and plans, Duffy submitted a new club proposal form on Dec. 19. As of LION’s print deadline, she has yet to hear a response about the approval of the club. 

“I think letting students be empowered [to] tell us what they are passionate about and for us as the adults to be there to support those interests [is most important],” Rowe said. “I know Dr. [Jennifer] Tyrrell, myself, and so many teachers [have] been trying to make these experiences meaningful and rich for students and for our entire community. We’ve grown and changed some of [these] traditions to be more expansive and to widen our lens of what we’re celebrating and what those celebrations can look like.”