Interact Club – Service Above Self

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Interact got that beat that makes you jump up to your feet.

You’ve heard it at the pep-rallies, you’ve heard it at the homecoming parade—it’s Interact’s chant to commence its Wednesday meetings that take place in room 3309.

Interact is Miami High’s most-involved community service club having won many service awards, including its members earning the Presidential Service Award multiple times within the past years. Interact also won 3rd place overall during Miami High’s 2016 Homecoming Parade. But, what is it that makes it different from other clubs in the school?

“Interact gets the reputation for having the weird kids or nerds,” said Interact advisor Mr. Emerson Perez. “But I think it’s because the members feel comfortable with each other hanging out in my classroom, so they know they can be themselves without being judged by their fellow members. Interact is full of all types of kids, and that’s what makes it wonderful: from high-achieving students, to athletes, to ESOL, and last but not least to the ‘weird kids’ for which the club is labeled.”

Senior Randy Rivera, Interact’s sergeant-at-arms, thinks the club offers more opportunities to get closer to your classmates while helping the community. “We are involved in the community more than any other club in the school,” he said.

Senior Olvin Villatoro, Interact’s district governor, thinks the unity of the club is what makes it different. “We are a tightly-knit group,” he said. “Mostly it’s due to the extra time we spend together at service—sometimes we see each other every day of the week. Aside from that, we also have a district, regional, and international chapter we have strong ties with, so we attend multiple events not limited to the school and our surroundings.”

Why should I join?

Joining a community service club like Interact has lots of benefits. “When graduation time comes around, you don’t have to worry about looking for that one hour to graduate,” said Rivera.

“I have acquired an exceeding large amount of community service hours,” said Interact’s vice-president in charge of community service, junior Mingly Yactayo.

“Joining the club provides you with countless opportunities for community service and to be part of a global network,” said Villatoro.

However, not everything is a bed of roses. “Although the opportunities are there, it takes commitment to make the most out of these opportunities,” reminded Villatoro. “This commitment makes you wake up early on Saturday mornings for service, get home slightly late on Wednesdays when we have meetings, and overall takes a large portion of your free time.”

Okay I want to join, so what do I do?

Interact is more accessible compared to other major clubs like Beta—which is an honor society—that require at least a 3.0 GPA. “Students interested in joining need a 2.0 GPA,” said Mr. Perez.

I joined, now what?

The hard part is not joining, but staying in the club. “To remain in good standing, students need at least 10 community service hours per month,” Mr. Perez said.

According to Interact’s advisor there are currently 260 members in the club; however, not everyone is active. “Some people have probably joined one of the other major clubs without informing us about it and forget to resign,” he said. “We always tell members that if they choose to switch clubs, they need to let us know so we can remove them from our roster.”

Although there are many inactive members, those who are active get to take on lots of opportunities. “The really involved members tend to average around 125-150 service hours per school year in which they are members,” said Mr. Perez.

“Anyone who joins Interact should expect to learn what it means to serve the community,” said Villatoro. “We don’t do it for ourselves, community service hours, or extra credit. Instead, we do it because we know there are other people, communities, and countries in need, and [by our actions] we can make a difference, staying true to our motto ‘Service Above Self’.”

Sophomore Lidia Herrera, in her second year as member, said, “You learn about yourself when you work with others towards one specific goal, helping the community. You learn about your strengths and weaknesses, but mainly about who you are and what you like.”

Officers are held to a higher standard

If you’re interested in being an officer for the club, Mr. Perez requires you to maintain a 2.75 GPA each nine-week grading period that you’re in office, regardless of whether your overall GPA at time of election is higher or lower than a 2.75.

“If they fail to meet the GPA requirement, I suspend them from duties until the next progress report for the next quarter comes out, and they get reinstated once they meet the grade requirement,” he said. “I don’t care how many hours they do because if they don’t meet the grade requirement, then it’s pointless because they are Miami High students first. Their diploma at the end of the day says ‘Miami High’ and not ‘Interact High’.”

Making a difference in its members

Interact doesn’t only help the community, but it also aims to make an impact on its members. “I’ve learned social skills, and how to deal with other people,” said Interact’s secretary, junior Elizabeth Astacio. “Especially as an officer, I’ve learned to be a leader, not just to know the way, but I’ve also learned to show it.”

Junior Armando Torres, who is in his second year belonging to the club, says Interact has changed the way he sees things. “Before I joined Interact, I didn’t see the importance of helping others and of being serviceable to them,” he said. “Now, I’ve realized that not everything is about me. By helping me see other people’s perspective of things, Interact has helped me be more open-minded and to work with others more cooperatively.”

Memories

When joining a club like Interact—where opportunities to make new friends and learn new things are endless—people get to make lots of unforgettable memories.     “After the 2016 Homecoming parade, all of us who participated went to the Interact Room to sing and dance along with our favorite songs,” said Astacio. “It was unforgettable because I saw how close we got after all the late practices, and countless hours we spent planning out our performance, it was a heart-warming feeling.”

For Olvin Villatoro, it was attending RYLA, a three-day conference in Coconut Creek with Interactors from all over the world. “I met tons of new people including kids from abroad, I gained more respect for Interact, and learned many lessons I will carry on throughout my life,” he said.

History

Interact was formed at Miami High in 1948, and it is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Miami.

Mr. Emerson Perez became Interact’s official advisor in 2010 because he wanted to get more involved.

He said, “When I started teaching, I was only expecting to be here for three years, but then I really enjoyed this profession and always saw the Interact kids being involved. The Interact advisor at the time was leaving, so I asked for the position.”

During his 8 years as advisor, Mr. Perez has seen the club through it all. “There have been too many memories to pick a favorite,” he said. “From winning the best service club award for the past 9 years, making the championship game in intramurals for the past 5 years, winning the Honoria club tournament in 2013, seeing many of my officers and members walk on stage to receive awards and be recipients or finalists of the Posse scholarship, and of course seeing those students who were kids when they first joined, and 4 years later walk on stage as young adults with bright futures.”