COURTNEY BOGLE applied to Thomas Magnet School (TMS) three years ago, hoping to teach English to seventh and eighth graders. When the principal, Mrs. Tracy Watson, asked if she’d be willing to start an extracurricular club for the middle school students, Bogle had already done her homework. She had once been a member of the National Beta Club when she was a middle schooler, and knew the club would be a perfect fit.
The decision was made several years ago to expand TMS from pre-K through fifth grade, also to include sixth, seventh, and eighth (middle) grades. In order to move students out of portable classrooms, the board of education approved an addition to the main building. This included four classrooms to accommodate seventh and eighth graders, two new bathrooms, and a space devoted to the marching band. These were completed at the start of the 2025 academic year.
“Many of our students have been in the TMS ‘bubble’ since kindergarten, except those who play sports at Harris Middle, or those involved in church youth groups. So our students don’t have opportunities for social interaction outside of their classmates. I wanted to start a club that would teach students not only how to be leaders, but how to serve others in return,” Bogle said.
The National Beta Club includes 9,600 clubs and more than 450,000 members, but this would be the first in Bedford County. Its mission is not only to promote academic achievement but to build character, teach leadership qualities, and develop students into responsible, well-rounded, community-minded leaders who serve with integrity.
To join the National Beta Club at TMS, sixth graders must have maintained an A average the previous year and have a teacher recommend them based on their character, leadership abilities, and willingness to serve others. Students in the sixth and seventh grades must stay on the A/B honor roll or higher for the entire year, along with a similar teacher recommendation. All members are expected to complete a minimum of 30 hours of community service.
Bogle said, “Getting a Beta club started was the easy part. Sustaining the club has been the difficult part, as conventions, summits, and competitions are not cheap. We try to lessen the burden on parents as much as possible.”
She has three co-sponsors who give selflessly of their time: Shelli Burk, Tara Turner, and Donna Cornelison, who heads up the robotics team. They knew the club was successful when several students who had planned to transfer to other middle schools in search of more opportunities reconsidered and stayed at TMS.
Bogle said, “Because of what Beta offered them, they chose to stay, and none of them regretted it. Academically, Beta gives students an achievement to strive for. We not only require students to maintain the A/B honor roll, but we also have opportunities for them to compete in academic competitions. This gives them another reason to WANT to learn, not just because the state test at the end of the year requires them to learn. It gives them ownership of their learning, especially since the tests in Beta are one grade level ahead of where students are supposed to be in their current academic year.”
Besides tests and competitions, students also volunteer in the after-school program and during field day activities. They also offered babysitting services during a school play; collected school supplies for a district in Savannah, Georgia; donated relief supplies following Hurricane Helene; provided food baskets to TMS students in need; and collected soda tabs for the Ronald McDonald House. During “Socktober,” they gathered over 1,600 pairs of socks for students and residents of local nursing homes. For the last two years, they have collaborated with community sponsors and shopped for and adopted 32 “Christmas angels.” And every Monday, members remain after school to serve as mentors and to tutor younger students.
Like their fearless leader, Bogle, students did more than just invest their time — they gave it sacrificially and willingly. They studied. They pushed themselves further than their comfort zones had ever been stretched, and when they earned their chance to compete, others took notice.
“We have had great success in competitions the last three years, with students placing in language arts, computer science, science, U.S. history, and spelling at the state level and even placing in language arts at the national level. Beta also offers visual arts, STEM, and performing arts competitions. Our students compete in everything from drawing to jewelry making and accessory design, 2D and 3D design, cake decorating, photography, robotics, engineering, dance, music, woodworking, scrapbooking, fiber arts, and sculpture.”
When they competed at the state level, students placed in the top five in six categories. Two years ago, they qualified to compete at the national convention in Savannah, Georgia, and last year, they qualified to attend the national convention in Orlando, Florida.
They were mastering the academic aspects of the National Beta Club, and their leadership qualities were shining through. But what about the students’ ability to serve?
“We were lucky to witness students serving others on both trips. Several got up and cooked breakfast for everyone and offered to wash dishes and clean the kitchen after we had cooked dinner. To see them offering to help outside of the ‘have to’ setting was amazing,” Bogle said. “We are trying to teach them to give back to their community, have compassion for others who are not like them, be observers of the world around them, and to be active members of society.”
Members are also challenged with planning and executing a service project. Their “Happy Hygiene” venture resulted in over 150 boxes being distributed to local students. For their most recent project, they partnered with the Make-A-Wish of Middle Tennessee Foundation and fulfilled the wish of a young lady who dreamed of going to Disney. GN
