Below are the responses I received to my request for information about high school
anime clubs. Thanks to everyone who so kindly shared their information and were
willing to help!
Julia Cooley
Julia Cooley, Librarian
Hampton High School
Hampton, VA
cooleyj@cox.net
Original request:
I am interested in starting an anime club at my high school and would like to hear
from sponsors of anime clubs in high schools regarding the following topics:
How did you get the club started?
What kind of information do you have in your charter?
Does your group do fundraising?
From which companies do you buy/request anime DVDs?
Do you have special activities outside of viewing anime together?
________________________________________________________
How did you get the club started?
I asked a few of the kids who were always reading the manga I already had if they
would be interested and the word spread like wildfire.
What kind of information do you have in your charter?
We don't have a charter.
Does your group do fundraising?
A little bit through the activities we do.
From which companies do you buy/request anime DVDs?
I buy from Amazon - they have a good selection. Manga I buy from the local comic
book store.
Do you have special activities outside of viewing anime together?
We sponsor and run an anime convention for middle and high school students (this is
our fundraiser) and we attend the anime convention at the local university.
Our club has been going for almost three years now
________________________________________________________
We have activity days once a month and a teacher can sponsor a club
(activity) during the last 45 minutes of their planning. Students can
sign up to go to an activity each of their four periods. (We are on a
block schedule.) The students came to me because I purchased the books
for the library and they come in everyday to check them out. They
begged me to sponsor the Anime Club. (I already have a Book Club and
didn't want to take on a second club ... Hence the begging.)
I let the kids do most of it. I am just there to keep control and to
make sure things don't get "dark". The school has had several calls
from parents concerned that it was anti-American (Japanese) art and that
it was evil...too much time on their hands. I've had the principal and
a guidance counselor come talk to me, but I've reassured them.
The kids bring in DVD's to view during activity day. We have had as
many as 70 kids show up for activity day for the Anime Club. We usually
break up into three or four different groups:
DVD Viewing - Some kids just sit and watch the cartoon
Role Play - Some kids take on the persona and have
costumes
Drawing - Some like to draw the characters
Discussion - Some like to sit and talk about the books,
cartoons, or the latest convention they've attended.
I've talked to them about the "dark" side and about the people who have
called to complain. I let them know I'm on their side and not to let me down by
getting into anything that would get us into trouble. They
really are good kids, they just never belonged before and now they have
a group that they can call their own. Sort of like the Trekkies of the
past. When I had the sign up sheet on the front desk, I had one of the
more popular girls come up to me and quietly ask where it was, when I
answered, I said boldly, "Anime Club? Right over there." She shrunk
down and shushed me...she didn't want her friends to know she liked
Anime, but she still wanted to come to the club ... And she still does.
:-)
lm from FL
_____________________________________________________
I'd like any information you get. I have a club that is very loosely
organized. I need to be in contact with companies to get DVD
permissions, and I have had conversations with the public library (which has a
club) about the content of said DVDs. I am concerned with the level of violence and
the profanity, and am quite careful to ban overtly sexual content.
The students have become bored with watching what we have, and don't
seem highly motivated to provide anything else. I am going to purchase
equipment for DDR (which they love). Also, we have just started making
powerpoint presentations about different series and characters, which
also seems to make them happy.
In general, they have been a hard group to organize--they are somewhat
countercultural and non-organized in their personalities. We have not
done fund raising or any outside conventions. I just don't have the
energy for that.
______________________________________________________
Links for Anime club resources:
http://www.angelfire.com/yt/ahsaa/ American H.S. Anime Association
http://web.mit.edu/anime/www/starting-a-club.html Starting a club
http://www.koyagi.com/showpermissions.html obtaining screening permission
http://www.abcb.com/parents/ parents guide to anime
http://www.koyagi.com/teachers.html teachers guide to anime
http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~anime/advice.html advice for starting a new club
http://demaagd.com/anime/animeclubs.html Getting started
http://demaagd.com/anime/survey.html Club member survey
________________________________________________________
Info about starting a Manga Club:
1. I had an interest meeting after school. I got signatures, told them the
policies and what I had planned. I told them there would be a board of directors
to advise me and plan meetings. If you were interested, fill out the form (I had
one with their name and lines on it) and tell me why you think you would be a good
Board of Director member. I then read those later and selected about a dozen kids.
We met several times and they offered ideas on many different things.
2. I contacted World's Finest Chocolate (through the Internet) and ordered lots of
candy bars. Either 2000 or 2500 candy bars. Three kinds: choc with caramel,
choc with almonds, and choc crisp bars. These sold for $1. each. We almost made
50 cents off each bar.
3. Anime members either had to sell 25 candy bars or pay $10 dues.
4. Only members would check out the books. The books would be purchased through
candy sells and their dues.
5. The books were ordered through Waldenbooks. They gave us about 25% off because
we ordered over $1000.00 worth. I covered all the Anime paperbacks in clear
contact paper. No call number. There is a round colored sticker at the top of
each book. Each series has its own color. (Stickers purchased at Ofce supply
store). All Anime books are filed by color (series) and kept on a double sided
book cart near the circulation desk. In the computer, instead of a call number
typed in, we just typed in Anime. The idea is to get them processed FAST because
the kids are so hyped up about them!
6. We only have ratings of Teen or All. Some of the Older Teens books are too
forward in sexual content for middle/jr high students. Don't buy Psychic Academy.
I did and now they have all been pulled because they are almost soft porn once you
start reading them. The artists really disquise this and you don't catch it at
first, and then when you do, it's like: Oh my gosh, I can't have this here in my
library! Off hand, I think we have at least 15 series now. Dragon Ball and Z is
another series which you may not want. Now that our school went down a grade to
having 6th grade and we are now called Central Middle School, I had to pull that
series also. Even though the main character is a male naked toddler, when you
start really looking at it, he's quite the character and it was not appropriate for
us.
I typed up a list of policy rules onto a laminated bookmark and gave to all the
members the first day that they were able to check out the books. Things like:
Only members will check out the anime books. You may not check out a book for a
friend. Because these books are so popular, please return within one week. Do NOT
let your anime book become a distraction to you in class. Only one Anime book
checked out at one time; however you may have two additional library books checked
out. If you loose your anime book, you must either pay for it or you will forfeit
your membership in the club.
I let teachers know that these books were not to be come a distraction in class; if
they did and had to take a book away from a student, please return it to the
library that day. We had several instances where books were taken up, placed on a
teachers' desk and then stolen later. Some kids are almost addicted to this genre'
and you don't want them to lose their focus of what school is all about - although
you are glad they are reading!
Once the candy was sold, the books were purchased and started circulating, more
kids wanted to join. At that point, there was no way for membership except by
paying the $10 dues.
This club has definitely increased our library circulation. A few of the anime
club members actually have become "library aides" before school by helping us as it
is so busy.
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