For the 2023-2024 school year, the Associated Student Body has approved 29 new clubs. The Accolade‘s cub reporters from the beginning journalism class will report on each new group in alphabetical order. For the previous ones that have already been posted, be sure to go to the Feature section. 

“Play up” means to put all of one’s energy into a game.

This mantra applies to two sophomore co-presidents who seek to grow their passion for basketball by helping children who may not have access to learn how to play the sport.

“Our mission is to share our passion for basketball with under-resourced kids,” co-president sophomore Jaden Shim said. “These PlayUp sessions are not only a matter of growing the kid’s passion and love for the game, but also teaching them how to cooperate [and] work together as a team.

Shim and co-president sophomore Jasper Hanrahan, who are both currently on the Sunny Hills basketball team, provide free clinics for children in Orange County through their club. The co-presidents said they found out about the club through a friend whose brother founded the organization in 2022.

After proposing the club in September to the Associated Student Body [ASB], it got approved in November. 

The club is a SH branch of the preexisting organization PlayUpOC, which holds basketball clinics at Parks Junior High and expects to expand to Brea Junior High as well. 

The sophomores brought the club to Sunny Hills for more exposure and to increase the number of active members and coaches. 

“Over time, I slowly began to develop a passion for working with the youth and helping them progress in their love for the sport,” Shim said. “I decided to make a commitment and join the organization and eventually go on to make this club at Sunny Hills in case there are others like me who love basketball and helping the youth.”

The members welcome anyone in eighth grade or younger to learn and improve their basketball skills. However, parents must sign a waiver excusing the organization from any responsibility for injuries.

“The training is not specifically catered to each individual kid, but it is more of an overall skills development system,” Shim said. “We then put those skills together at the end of the session by having the kids run scrimmages against each other to gain in-game experience with the skills they learned.”

In addition to the free clinics that focus on learning basketball skills, he said they aspire to teach social skills, hard work and discipline. 

“Letting these kids learn how to build stronger relationships with kids they have not met before is an extremely important skill that will undeniably help them down the road,” the co-president said. 

During its club meetings, the presidents present information about the clinics to gather more volunteers.

“For each weekly meeting, our cabinet presents a brief run-through of our organization in the form of a PowerPoint,” Hanrahan said. “Each meeting we give away free food, usually pizza or donuts, to the students who attend and listen to the whole meeting.”

With around 30 members in the club, each clinic lasts for an hour and 30 minutes. Though the organization currently holds clinics every other Sunday at Parks Junior High between 4-6 p.m., the sophomores said they hope to hold practices every Sunday. 

The number of students fluctuates, but Hanrahan said they usually host 10-15 kids accompanied by around five coaches. 

Club member sophomore Manveer Anand hopes to spread basketball knowledge to the youth as well.

“It’s going well, I wouldn’t hope for anything better,” said Anand, who joined the club after its first meeting because he is close friends with the co-presidents. “I can’t wait to continue the wealth and spread the joy.”

To become a coach, a few expectations need to be met. One must have basketball experience, know how to work with children, communicate well with the other coaches and show up consistently. If these standards are met, then he or she will be a substitute coach for a few months before becoming an official coach. 

Along with being a coach, some other positions include being a social media manager and sending out emails.

“Our club can impact our community by offering free clinics for basketball,” Shim said. “It is an outlet to reach your passion for the sport as we share our passion for the sport and for these kids.” 

The PlayUp club meets every other Friday during lunch in Room 186 and posts updates on its Instagram @shhs.playup. For more information, contact Shim at [email protected] or Hanrahan at [email protected].