WHHS recently welcomed Juntos Club, a club dedicated to teaching about the different aspects of Latino and Hispanic culture, such as food, games and celebrities. The club also works to help Spanish-speaking students in other areas of their lives.
“We also aim to help students who may struggle in English and [whose] first language is Spanish,” Ana Sanmiguel-Valderrama, ‘26, president of Juntos Club, said. “Overall, we just strive to be a place where people can feel comfortable expressing themselves.”
Sanmiguel-Valderrama founded the club after years of feeling somewhat isolated at WHHS because of her Hispanic culture. According to enrollment data gathered by usnews.com from 2020-2023, students of Hispanic descent make up only 4.3% of WHHS’s student body.
“I wanted to start this club because I felt that Latinos and Hispanic people are one of the smallest minorities in Walnut, and I didn’t know many Latinos in the school,” Sanmiguel-Valderrama said. “I felt we had no representation and were a rejected group in the school, and I wanted to change that, so I made a club that will help people feel included in Walnut.”
Originally, Sanmiguel-Valderrama had some trouble getting the club started. Some felt that since the school already had a Spanish Club, Juntos was unnecessary. Despite this, she kept working to have her club approved by administration.
“I don’t know much about Spanish Club, but from what I do know, they are focused on the Spanish language, not culture,” Sanmiguel-Valderrama said. “We are more focused on Latino and Hispanic culture, and although Spanish-speaking goes into that, we don’t require it. It took a while, and I had to talk to a few people, but Walnut recognized that it was an important cause and eventually the club got approved.”
While WHHS’s Juntos Club isn’t affiliated with any larger organization, it was inspired by various groups within the community.
“The name Juntos came from a club one of my friends’ moms is in,” Sanmiguel-Valderrama said. “We aren’t a part of their club, but I think our club is pretty similar to a lot of groups in school communities, and it has a very similar mission.”
Juntos meets in Room 2110 from 3-4 p.m. one to two times per month. Each meeting, members watch a slideshow presentation regarding some aspect of Latino and Hispanic culture.
“Although this club is centered around Latinos and Hispanics, we want to spread it and are happy to have anyone who’s willing to learn about it come to our meeting,” Sanmiguel-Valderrama said.