In February, Miami Palmetto Senior High’s Inter-Club Council launched the Microgrant Initiative Program to help student clubs access funding for activities and resources. Created by junior and Student Council ICC board member and chair Haiden Clarin and activities director Elizabeth Valero, the program aims to support clubs that lack the budget needed to carry out their goals.
The ICC oversees all clubs on campus, ensuring constitutions are up to date, providing demographic reports and ensuring clubs hold meetings each month.
For a long time, Clarin had been thinking of new ways to improve the school’s clubs, as she is involved in several herself. She noticed a common trend among clubs who wanted to host activities but were unable to do so because they lacked the necessary funding. Because of this, she helped create the Microgrant Initiative to ensure that clubs are able to receive the funds they need to carry out meaningful activities.
The main goal of the initiative is to support smaller clubs that may not have access to large budgets or fundraising opportunities. The program helps these clubs afford basic needs in order to keep their organizations running.
The money given to clubs through this program comes from funds raised during Panther Prowl. Panther Prowl is a school event and competition between all grade levels at MPSH where students compete through dancing, lip-syncing and showing class spirit. A portion of the money raised during this event is used to provide these microgrants.
“If the student council gets more proactive to start fundraising, maybe [microgrants] can go up to $200. But right now, the focus is to give clubs that don’t have what they need in terms of funding the little things that they can now go and get,” Valero said.
Through this program, any club at MPSH is eligible to apply for a microgrant. By filling out a simple Google Forms document explaining their goals, what they would use the money for and what the club has done or hopes to accomplish, their request can be submitted for consideration.
The process of selecting which clubs receive the grant is handled by the ICC liaisons. They review the applications and determine which clubs will receive funding each month. This month, the microgrant was awarded to the Sports Medicine Club.
The Sports Medicine Club works closely with the school’s athletic teams by helping them with injury evaluation, rehab exercises, hydration and making sure athletes stay safe during practices and games. In this club, members learn the importance of first aid, CPR, injury prevention and how to properly support athletes during practices and games.
Senior veteran of the club, Mia Echevarria, has been a part of the sports medicine program for three years and is the head student trainer. She helps lead the program along with other athletic trainers, with her primary role of helping train students who are new to the club.
“I teach them skills like taping and some of the exercises we use to help athletes recover from injuries, similar to physical therapy,” Echevarria said.
Receiving this microgrant is the perfect opportunity for clubs like these to expand their learning and teaching to others.
“Having more resources will allow us to better support injured athletes and give students in the program more hands-on learning experience,” Echevarria said.
Clarin expresses gratitude for the initiative, as she has been working on it for the longest time and is thrilled to finally see it come to life.
“I’m honestly excited to see how it can help Palmetto and its clubs grow. I think there’s been so much room for these clubs to grow and create a stronger impact. I have been working with the Treasurer in order to ensure that the microgrant is possible, and I am so excited to see where it can take the school,” Clarin said.
As more clubs apply for funding, the Microgrant Initiative aims to expand opportunities for student organizations across campus. With the dedication of this project there is likely to be a bright future for all MPSH clubs.
