Student Organizations and Clubs

Academic Team Sponsor: Bonnie Garrot The Academic Quiz Bowl is a competitive academic organization of selected Rising Starr students. Students are selected based on scores obtained from preliminary testing and simulated competition tryouts. Open testing and try-outs for all interested students are held at the beginning of the school year. Students will compete with other schools throughout the district during the school year. Meetings are held after school.

Book Club Sponsor: Christopher Harper The RSMS book club meets monthly in the Media Center to discuss books and share the love of reading and books.

Fellowship of Christian Students and Athletes: Cold Pizza Sponsors: Natalie Fields and Vickie Ward - Cold Pizza is a combination of Fellowship of Christian Students (FCS) and Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). Any and all students, regardless of religious affiliation or denomination, are welcome to participate. Cold Pizza meets every Friday morning before school, and it is a time for students to enjoy food, fun and fellowship. Each week a motivational speaker comes to visit and share words of wisdom in a way that is both fun and inspirational. It’s a great way to meet new people and enjoy time with old friends.

Friday Lunch Bunch Sponsor: Sarah Maisey The Friday Lunch Bunch meets once a week in room 805 to foster friendship and interaction between students of all ability levels. Teacher must recommend students.

HOSA Sponsors Mandy Ridgeway & Meehan Murphy. HOSA is a club for students who are interested in Health Occupation Careers. This club is aligned with the high school HOSA program and is perfect for students who may join in high school or those who want to explore the different areas of medicine.

Junior Beta Club Sponsors: Lyn Hubbard, Tiffany O'Neil, & Gabrielle Humphrey. High achievement, outstanding character, and scholastic leadership are attributes of the Beta Club member. Junior Beta Club is the middle school version of the National Beta Club, a service-leadership club for students in grades 5-12. Beta Club sponsors activities that promote academic excellence and citizenship such as peer tutoring, school assistance programs, and community projects. Membership in the Beta Club is by invitation only and requires a student to have and maintain semester averages of 90 or above in all classes, including Connections. Eligibility for membership is assessed at the end of each semester.

LEGO Robotics Team Sponsors: Taran Swanson and Jamie Carson The Robotics Team is a team of 10 students selected at the beginning of the year to compete in the First Lego League. The students must learn to program and build the robot, be able to work well with other people, and be prepared to work on a large project relating to the Robotics Challenge released for the year. Meetings take place one or two days after school and some mornings. The competitions are held on Saturdays.

Math Team Sponsor: Vickie Anderson The math team is a competitive academic organization of selected students who are recommended by their math teacher. Members compete against other area Middle Schools at the Griffin RESA Middle School Math competition usually held in January or February of each year.

Radio Club Sponsor: Bob Didier Students who join Radio Club help to manage the Campus Radio Station WRSM 100.1FM Panther Radio from the Technology Lab. They will research music and artists, record intros, PSAs, and Panther News from Peoples, Rising Starr and Starr’s Mill. They will also create playlists of songs that the station plays 24 hours a day. It is a fun group where you get a chance to be yourself ON AIR and be a voice for Panther Radio.

RSMS Panther News Sponsor: Christopher Harper This club produces the morning broadcast, Channel 17 Action News, and other video related projects. Auditions are required and occur each January.

Science Olympiad Sponsor: Whitney Rider Science Olympiad is a competitive academic team focusing on various scientific disciplines, such as chemistry, forensics, earth science, biology, engineering, and technology. Each competition is like an academic track meet with 23 different events requiring teamwork, ingenuity, and problem-solving skills. Students will meet with their event coaches each week from October to March to prepare for competitions. The team competes in academic and building events at the regional level, progressing with continued success to state and national levels.

Sports Sponsors: Coaches Seventh and eighth grade students are invited to try out for the following sports during the year: football, cheerleading, basketball, volleyball, and track. Sixth graders may not participate in athletics; however, an intramural sports program is offered.

Student Council Sponsors: Jennifer Doyal, Vickie Ward - The Rising Starr Student Council is a team of representatives from each grade who will provide input for decisions regarding school related items. Students are selected by homeroom teachers.

Yearbook Staff Sponsor: Kristen Brady The Rising Starr Panthers Yearbook Staff is responsible for selling, developing, and distributing the school’s yearbook. This staff is chosen from literally hundreds of applicants and is responsible for designing, selling, advertising, and photography. Yearbook staff has meetings and work sessions after school as needed.