The clashes of swords and tales of kings and conquests are no longer stories of the past. EHS’s newest club, The Round Table, is taking students back in time to explore the world of medieval history.
Freshman Colton Brown first came up with the idea of founding the club after taking history teacher Amanda Jackson’s medieval history class and leaving wanting more.
“I had gotten really into crusades, so that’s the main reason I took this class, and I got really into it,” Brown said. “But this is only a first-semester class, and I’ve got four years here, so I wanted to continue on learning about medieval history.”
The youth of the club has not stopped the members from hitting the ground running, assigning officer positions and generating “High-in-the-sky” goals, as Jackson, the club sponsor, dubbed them.
Currently, the group’s focus lies on a final tournament-style event, which will conclude a series of immersive classes run by the club leaders throughout next school year, such as creating a coat of arms or diving into different types of swords. They also plan on conducting a Renaissance fair.
“The hope is that, once we really get moving, we are able to reach out to the drama club and performing arts departments to see if they can coordinate with us to put on the tournament and fair,” sophomore AJ Lane, another founding member, said.
The club meets every other Wednesday in Jackson’s room, A232, and functions under officers different from any others.
Instead of being called the president, the Round Table refers to Brown as the king. Lane serves as the exchequer, a medieval title for the financial advisor. Other positions include a scribe and advisor.
These roles can allow the team of officers to collaborate and work together more freely.
“I can work as an advisor to the exchequer, but I can also work as an advisor to the king when the other advisor isn’t here,” sophomore Maribel Paty said.
The founding members not only hope to generate interest in medieval history as a class, but also to provide a fun, relaxed environment providing deeper knowledge sought by those who enjoyed the class and, like Brown, are interested on a higher level.
“I think that it’s important to find your place where you feel like you fit in, where you belong. And if that place is a medieval history club, cool,” Jackson said. “It’s an opportunity for kids to learn more, but also to find community with people who have shared interests, which I think it really cool.”