Clubs & Activities

Digital Academy of Florida (DAOF) faculty will initiate clubs in K-5 based on student interest and availability of faculty volunteer sponsors. The Community Engagement Specialist (CES) will email families to assess interest in returning/new clubs. If 5 or more students express interest in the club in K-2 or 3-5, the CES will seek a Faculty Advisor to support the club. The Faculty Advisor will provide each interested students’ Learning Coach (LC) with a permission slip which will include the club’s name and description. The LC must electronically sign and return the permission slip which will be housed in a designated SharePoint folder.

Approved clubs will be listed on the school’s website, including the club’s name, brief description, faculty advisor, and meeting details.

Set dates will be established annually to initiate new clubs.

Students in grades 6-12 may initiate the formation of a student group or club.

All club formation shall be initiated only by students. School staff or parents shall not initiate the formation of student groups or clubs.

Set dates will be established annually to initiate new clubs.

All clubs are required to have a Faculty Advisor who will assist the students in the running of the student group or club but who shall not lead or direct the activities of the club. Each student group or club shall have a Faculty Advisor present at all meetings for supervision and support.

All student groups or clubs shall meet when the students who are participating in the club are not receiving academic instruction. Student group or club activities may not interfere with academic or required class time.

Meetings shall not materially and substantially interfere with the orderly conduct of the educational activities of the school.

No club may be formed that would disrupt the school or learning. No club may be formed that would violate any Florida laws or regulations set forth by the Department of Education.

Before the student group or club meets for the first time, the group or club must have a Faculty Advisor, the club must have a name which is descriptive of the focus of the particular club, a description of what types of activities the club will engage in, and a draft constitution for the club which shall indicate that the club is open to all students and no student or student group may be excluded from participation. The Faculty Advisor may assist students in developing these documents.

All student groups and clubs who meet the above criteria, and have at least 5 currently enrolled students interested, shall be approved to hold meetings and engage in activities. There however shall be no mandatory attendance numbers or required number of students to hold a meeting.

The denial of any student request to form a group or club shall be provided in writing, articulate the reason for the denial and provide an opportunity for the student(s) who seek to form the group to modify the request so that it complies with the requirements of this policy.

Information about the student groups and clubs will be available on the school’s website so that parents may learn about the nature and purpose of each group or club.

Club history will be maintained in a SharePoint site that includes when the club was founded, students who founded the club, students who expressed interest in the creation of the club, faculty advisor, club description, and club constitution.

All meetings shall be student initiated and open to all students in the school. Student attendance at any meeting shall be completely voluntary.

Faculty Advisors present at any religiously oriented club meetings will be present only in a non-participatory capacity. (i.e., They cannot lead the students in prayer, preach or teach or determine any specific theological view or religious view.)

The Faculty Advisor for a religious student group shall be present to ensure student safety and supervision.

Outside organizations are not permitted to direct, conduct, control, or regularly attend student group or club meetings. Student groups may invite outside organizations or individual speakers to attend their meetings, as long as the outside organizations or individuals do not direct, conduct, control or regularly attend activities of the group. All outside organizations, speakers or individuals must follow the school’s established procedure for allowing visitors into the virtual campus, including any registration procedures. Guests or visitors must be supervised by school employees at all times.

All student groups shall have equal access to publicize and announce meetings and activities, to the extent the school has these places, the school website, newsletters, and club fairs.

No employee, contractor, or agent shall be permitted to:

• Influence the form or content of any prayer or other religious activity connected with student meetings;
• Encourage or agree to advise any student group or club that would materially and substantially interfere with the orderly conduct of educational activities within the school. The denial of any student request to form a group or club shall be made in writing, articulate the reason for the denial and provide an opportunity for the student(s) who seek to form the group to modify the request so that no material and substantial interference occurs;
• Attend, participate in, advise or facilitate any meeting at which unlawful conduct is likely to occur. Any Faculty Advisor who becomes aware of unlawful conduct shall immediately report such conduct to the Director of Schools;
• Deny formation of a student led group or club based upon any discriminatory basis or personal views of the employees or staff;
• Expend public funds beyond the incidental costs of providing methods to announce the time and location of a group or club’s and the incidental costs of providing the facilities to conduct the meetings;
• Compel any employee of to attend a group or club meeting that is contrary to the beliefs of the employee.
• Sanction meetings that are otherwise unlawful or that would threaten the well-being of students and faculty members.