ONE club, started by junior Taylor Lindsey, is designed to empower high school girls and to be a place where all girls can come and give each other support.

“No girl should ever feel insecure or bullied, and we have all felt that way at some point,” Lindsey said.  “My hope is that ONE club can be a place where girls feel safe and comfortable enough to talk and open up to each other.”

Junior Kaylee Birlingmair joined ONE club because she thinks it is especially important for girls to empower each other and ONE supports that idea.

“The club is having a positive impact on girls here at U-High because it’s spreading the message of accepting and being friends with everyone” Birlingmair said.

Being a member of the club, girls are able to express their thoughts on social issues in their life to each other and receive support when they need it.  Junior Caroline McKinzie became a member of the club because she had a lot of friends involved and it was a good cause to support.

“ONE club is a great place for girls to come together,” McKinzie said. “The club provides a place where girls can talk about things that they need to get out without any judgement” Caroline Mckinzie said.

As a leader of the club, Birlingmair hopes to spread a message of positivity.  She has been working on starting several projects within the club.

“At a meeting we decided we are going to start a project with Post-it notes,” Birlingmair said. “We are putting Post-it notes with positive messages on people’s locker to spread positivity.”

Every meeting has a message or a theme and the participants explore.  In an upcoming meeting the theme is going to be body confidence, and members will be encouraged to share unique experiences addressing body confidence.

McKinzie’s goal is to meet new girls among different grades and get to know them better. She said she has already met new people and looks forward to becoming closer with all of the members of the club.

“I want to continue to meet new people and expand my horizons” McKenzie said.

Junior Megan Wittman is glad she joined the club because she loves being able to talk about her problems with her peers.  She says it has made her a better listener as well.

“It has made me more aware of the things that I say or how I treat other girls,” Wittman said. “It is important that there is a club that empowers women, because I feel like there is a lot against us in the world, and it is good to have a safe space.”

The club meets every other Friday in room 240 and is open to all female students.  Later in the year, the club plans to send leaders to Metcalf to talk to the junior high girls.  They also hope that over the next couple of years the club will spread to all of the Intercity schools.