Loftis hoisting his plaque after winning first place at this year’s convention.
Courtesy of the Bladen County School Facebook page
Isaiah Loftis
Courtesy of the Bladen County School Facebook page
Jair McElveen on stage as a top 3 finalist for National Beta president at this year’s National Beta Convention.
Courtesy of the Bladen County School Facebook page
McElveen flanked by proud East Bladen educators.
LOUISVILLE, KY — Although not all of the awards received have been announced for each participating Bladen County school, it is safe to say that Bladen has been represented well by the area’s high schools at the 2023 National Beta Convention.
This year, Isaiah Loftis, a student at Bladen Early College High School, won first place for his Division 1 art entry.
East Bladen student Jair McElveen was one of the three finalists for Beta National President. East Bladen also brought home a second place win for their presidential campaign skit.
Additional high school winners and winners at the elementary and middle school level will be announced in the coming days.
Why join Beta?
According to their website, the mission of the National Beta Club is “to promote the ideals of academic achievement, character, service and leadership among elementary and secondary school students.” Essentially, Beta Club helps to give students the tools and experience they need to be effective leaders.
Beta Club members have to meet a lot of requirements to keep their membership, such as maintaining high grades and volunteering for community service. These things make Beta perfect for a future or current resume!
Beta Club can also give students the opportunity to meet friends with similar interests who are also working hard to achieve the goals they set. Beta Club allows students to bond with their peers while also avoiding bad influences.
It is a crucial part of Beta Club to participate in community service projects because studies show that people who give back and volunteer are usually more fulfilled and lead a better life.
As the National Beta Club website states, Beta is “not for everyone. Just those who’d like to become leaders,” which is a great indication that students will be learning leadership skills that will serve them during their K-12 education, as well as through college and their careers. Experience taking on responsibility will be useful when applying to colleges.
Beta Club encourgaes students to be themselves, and to be accepting of others. Projects in Beta Club may be cover a mulitude of different topics and charities. Students could support animal shelters or LGBTQ+ charities. Whatever a student’s interest is, Beta Club will be supportive.
Of course, Beta Club will help give students the incentive to keep their grades high so they can remain active members. Their fellow Beta peers can also help them study when needed, or remind them of their goals if they start to get off track. This will lead to a higher possibility of scholarships in college. It’s not uncommon for Beta Club members to get scholarship offers even before they’ve applied for college.