All Hands on Deck: Increasing a Sense of Belonging for Students and Staff at Eastwood
At Eastwood Middle School, belonging isn’t just a goal, it’s a commitment. This year, Principal James Tutin took a major step forward with the launch of Eastwood’s first Club Day, an all-hands-on-deck initiative designed to strengthen community, elevate student voice, and create meaningful opportunities for connection beyond the classroom. On club days, students in grades 6 through 8 are given an opportunity to experience a traditionally “extracurricular” activity during the normal school day, with no prohibitive cost barrier.
Club days create connection
The energy is undeniable. Students fill hallways, classrooms, and common spaces with excitement as they connect through shared interests, from coding and gardening to flag football and board games. As principal of Eastwood Middle School, Mr. Tutin is proud to lead this initiative, but the real magic comes from the collective effort of the entire middle school staff. Teachers, paraprofessionals, and support personnel are stepping into roles as club sponsors, offering their time, creativity, and passions to nurture students.
Feedback from our Panorama student surveys made one thing clear: our students are craving more opportunities to feel connected to school, not just academically, but socially and emotionally. Club Days were born directly from this need.
This project aims to build a diverse, inclusive set of student-selected clubs that reflect the interests of our school community. Students and staff collaborated to create clubs that span:
- Music & Performing Arts – like the Eastwood String Ensemble, supported with new sheet music
- STEM Exploration – Coding Clubs powered by Raspberry Pi kits
- Mindfulness & Journaling – featuring personal journals and hands-on creative materials
- Sports & Movement – including a rapidly growing Girls Flag Football club, complete with flag belts, footballs, and yard markers
- Creative Expression – like Cooking, Gardening & Wildflower Club
- Games & Social Connection – from Deal Me In card clubs to the Board Game Club stocked with Ticket to Ride, Codenames, Qwirkle, Clue, Mantis, and more
- Fandom & Fun – such as an enthusiastic Pokémon Club (powered by actual card packs!)
Each club becomes a doorway, a place where students discover passions, strengthen friendships, and build relationships with caring adults.
By investing in this project, the Foundation helped remove barriers to participation, celebrate student choices and voices and create inclusive spaces where every student can belong. We are supporting deep, joy-filled engagement that strengthens our entire school community
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Looking for ways you can support Washington Township Schools? Donate today and help our foundation support programs to enhance the educational experience for our students and provide resources for MSDWT teachers and staff.
