For years, the Alpha Gamma Sigma (AGS) Honor Society has been at Pierce serving the community, and recently the club has made a concerted effort to expand their scope on campus.
The goal of the club is to get community college students together to help out the community and encourage scholasticism, said club president Zohal Ghulam-Jelani. To be a member, students must have a 3.0 GPA and do 15 hours of community service.
This semester, the club experienced a 60% increase in membership, and AGS stands as the largest club on campus with over 60 members.
For Ghulam-Jelani, the club has grown considerably since when she first joined Fall 2011 in her freshman year.
“It was good, but not great,” she said.
Although the club still maintained a notable presence on campus when she joined, Ghulam-Jelani heard from older members that the club’s membership was dwindling.
In response, AGS has since revamped its website and increased the number of events it holds on campus. Internally, the club has also tried to foster a more inclusive environment.
Afsatu Metzger, vice-president of the AGS, felt that the in the past the club felt more closed off, in addition to not highlighting some benefits of being a member, such as transcript recognition when transferring.
“I think we’re more inviting this semester,” Metzger said.
Since stepping up their efforts, the club’s current membership matches that of the club before she joined, Ghulam-Jelani said.
For those students who have yet to join AGS, Metzger advises them to not completely block out the club out of considering, calling it “more than just an honors club.”
“It’s also a club where you meet a lot of people and you expand on those friendships,” she said.
But for students who might not be able to afford the time to join the AGS, the club still welcomes volunteers at the events they throw, said Ghulam-Jelani.
Kaycea Campbell, advisor AGS and assistant professor of economics, admires the energy of students in the club, and she attributes their enthusiasm to the many resources they can use to coordinate events, such as social media.
“They’re so in touch with everything,” she said. “Everything you can get is at the touch of your fingertips.”
For Ghulam-Jelani, she believes that that getting involved comes naturally for students.
“I think we have an innate trait to help others,” she said.
Alpha Gamma Sigma currently has a barbeque scheduled for the ASO Halloween Carnival from 12 to 6 p.m. Oct. 31, and it’s gearing up for its Staff Appreciation Banquet during the first week of November.
