Thanks to Builders Club advisors and members who completed their respective end-of-year surveys last spring, we’ve learned some important things about the Builders Club experience. Here are some of the results:

  1. What members learned: Community awareness is an important part of membership — with 87% of students reporting that they gained an understanding of local needs. After that, 64% of members said they’ve learned how to help plan service projects. Third, 62% learned how to set goals and work to achieve them.
  2. Skills gained: When selecting all the skills that applies to them, collaboration or teamwork was No. 1, with 88%. Second was communication and listening at 81%. The third-most-selected skill was problem solving at 67%.
  3. Community needs or issues members care about most: When selecting all those that they cared about, 71% selected kindness, while 69% chose bullying prevention and safety. Hunger and homelessness was chosen by 67% of members.
  4. Main challenges faced by clubs: By far, most students (70%) reported that they thought the No. 1 challenge that keeps other kids from joining Builders Club is time — kids are busy with many activities! After that, 27% of members said that Builders Club needs better marketing to explain to students what the club is about. The third-most-reported challenge (22%) was transportation for students to get to club meetings.
  5. How to improve clubs: In the survey, 46% of members said they would like their club to do more service projects that focus on issues students care about. Funding was also a common concern, with 35% saying their club needs more money for service projects and club activities. And the third improvement members would like to see, at 33%, was more time to meet as a club!
  6. Members were asked how Builders Club has impacted their school/organization. Responses included:
    • “Builds better leaders.”
    • “More people volunteer and join the club.”
    • “We made people feel happier and more included.”
    • “It made our school a more caring and inclusive environment.”
    • “Our club has helped out our school in small ways that still make a big difference.”
    • “It helps build friendships and comfort and support in the community.”
    • “I think the club has improved our community by showing how you can give back and providing a safe environment to have fun in while doing good for the community.”
    • “The club helped me become a better student and better person for my community.”
    • “Our school is a much better place because of this club.”
    • “Leadership and respect towards other people — very positive effect and impact.”

Advisors also provided important insights into club life and the resources and support available to clubs. What we learned:

  1. Club size: The survey showed that 39% of advisors reported their clubs had 11-20 members while 26% reported 21-25 members, and 14% had five-10 members.
  2. Meeting frequency: Among advisors, 41% said their clubs meet twice a month. Another 32% reported they meet monthly while 24% said their clubs meet every other week.
  3. Number of service projects: Elsewhere in the survey, 41% of advisors reported that their club completed five or more projects, while 34% reported three to four projects. Almost 21% of the clubs completed one to two projects.
  4. What members learned: Answers to this question were almost identical to members’ responses — with 86% of advisors choosing an understanding of the needs of their community as the biggest topic members learned. After that, 72% reported that members learned how to help plan service projects. Third place was a tie, with 58% of advisors saying that members learned how to set and achieve goals, and 58% saying that members learned more about themselves (interests and talents).
  5. Leadership opportunities:
    • Advisors reported the following officer positions in their clubs: president (84%), vice president (82%), secretary (77%), treasurer (69%), sergeant-at-arms (7%) and historian (5%). Other officer positions reported: social media director, arts and crafts director, bulletins director and grade level representatives. Only 7% of advisors reported that they didn’t have officers in their clubs.
    • Committees also remain important, with 71% of advisors reporting that they have committees in their clubs. The top three committee types were service projects (67%), fundraising (24%) and recruitment (17%).