School Train Clubs

[capltd29]

Hey,

My High School is in the process of getting a Teen Railfan club started, My band director and english teacher are Planning on sponsoring it, there are a few other students besides me that are planning on participating.

Does anybody else have such a club?

Jon Parker

[M630]

Eau Claire [WI] Memorial HS has one...

[jogden]

much to my dissappointment, we do not have any sort of train club at school.

[Njt4300]

My school does not have a Train club but I am trying to get one.

[vector_one75]

While I'm now far away in both time and distance, back in 1968-72 I used to be a math teacher at the Polytechnic Preparatory Country Day School in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, and being a railfan myself and a number of students who were interested they formed a railroad club which I wound up being the faculty liaison for the club. One of the suudents' gransfathers had a layout which he donated and was put into a rear alcove of my homeroom and plans were made for expansion.

We also had trips on tains as well, the most memorable being a trip to Philadelphia on the (by then RDC-equipped) "Crusader" (Jersey Central / Reading Route) to Philadelphia and back on a Metroliner, with a trolley run with both subway-surface and street running in between. Between school and Newark of course we had the usual subway run and the PATH train as well, and subway back from Penn Station. There were about 20 students, as I recall, and another teacher accompanied as well.

Coincidently, during the same era I was actually a graduate student going for a Masters Degree in Civil Engineering at Polytechnic Institure of Brooklyn (now Polytechnic University of New York) which had past roots with Poly Prep. And there I was a student at the Poly Railroad Club as well! At one time I was going to get both clubs, the high school and the University, to get together but logistics and family commitments required that I move from New York to "down under" before I was able to do so.

Since I'm now on the othe side of the world, I've lost touch of everyone in New York, but having found and looked at this thread brings back many happy memories of those years.

Best wishes to all of you!

Vytautas B. Radzivanas
Perth, Western Australia

[CoastStarlight99]

I wil be a Froshman 9-05 and I know the school has like 300 clubs, hopefully there is a railroad club somewhere in there...I will deffinetly join in a second if there is!!

[AEM7Fan]

I think that I am probably the only railfan in the entire school, so to my disappointment, we do not have a Railfan Club.

[The RailMan]

I graduated from high school in May 2003. I had tried my entire four years to start up some sort of railfan club. The closest I did was bring in my railfan photographs to the Art Club. But with my four years there I found many teachers and faculty members who were, as I call them "closet railfans" I also found this with several of my fellow students, but unfortunately the numbers I needed to bring a Railfan club into existence was far too few and was not a popular idea to spend the schools clubs and activities budget. They rather have spent the money on PS2s and N64s for the "Gamers Republic" game club. However if I went on a school trip, and there were tracks nearby (in example: our trip to Philadelphia), the teachers would allow me to go off and explore, and if they didn't I went anyways

[CoastStarlight99]

I graduated from high school in May 2003. I had tried my entire four years to start up some sort of railfan club. The closest I did was bring in my railfan photographs to the Art Club. But with my four years there I found many teachers and faculty members who were, as I call them "closet railfans" I also found this with several of my fellow students, but unfortunately the numbers I needed to bring a Railfan club into existence was far too few and was not a popular idea to spend the schools clubs and activities budget. They rather have spent the money on PS2s and N64s for the "Gamers Republic" game club. However if I went on a school trip, and there were tracks nearby (in example: our trip to Philadelphia), the teachers would allow me to go off and explore, and if they didn't I went anyways

Lol, good you tried atleast

[jhdeasy]

I recently noticed that St. John's Preparatory School (the former Mater Christi High School) in Astoria, New York City, has a railroad club:

http://www.stjohnsprepschool.org/train/ ... index.html

The school is located a few blocks north of the Queens approach to the Hell Gate Bridge. Alumni from the 1960s and 1970s, who don't consider themselves railfans, said they often gazed out the windows to count cars on freight trains traveling across the bridge.

[stevo]

much to my dissappointment, we do not have any sort of train club at school.

as i go to the same school james went to, i have to agree with him sadly.

i wish there was one, there's a club for everything else. the thing is, if i start one, i'll proly be the only member of the club. my small engines teacher last year was into trains, he could be in charge or something. but besides us 2, idk who else would be interested.

[steemtrayn]

There is a school in Bayonne NJ that has a club, but it is not a school activity, more like a private club that the school gives space to.

[Guilford Guy]

thursday 7th period theres like a choose froma list of activities you want to do which you select 1 in the beginnikng of each term, and ones a Model Railroad one, not neccesarily a club but there are field trips.

[Conrail1990]

Just like AEM7Fan. I think I am the only railfan in my school. I doubt my school will start a railfan club.

[trainfreak]

Once you get to college you might end up meeting more railfans your age. I know of three other railfans at my college. Two are students one is a professor. I actually met one of the students on accident trackside while waiting for a train on the Buffalo Line before I went home for Thanksgiving break.