Experts say, “great minds think alike”, but, if you have heard or had a chance to experience Montgomery College’s club the Great Minds Club, you will disagree. It’s one of MC’s most diverse, recognized and largest club on the Takoma Park Campus. It was also awarded ‘The Club of the Year’ in the 2016/2017 academic year.

At the beginning of Fall 2016, Ursan Tchouteng Njike, the “brain-child” of the club collaborated with some of his peers, which include Landry Balbin, the current President, Jason Dale the former secretary, and Harold Kamela, to make the club official. The philosophy originated from the neighborhood called, Mont Febe, where Ursan grew up. He even wrote a paper about this neighborhood and their style when he took English 101 with Dr. Michael LeBlanc. With the vision of his neighborhood in mind, Ursan created and led the club with the ultimate purpose to make people become the best version of themselves through discussion. Through this, he believed that the campus will be highly socially interactive just like his childhood neighborhood was. The club chose Mr. Rolf Barber as their advisor because of his committed involvement with student employment connecting them to opportunities in and outside of school. Barber works in the Student Development department and has been awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by President Barack Obama for his powerful service.

In the middle of the Fall 2016 semester, Ursan came across Joshua Briggs who was full of passion and enthusiasm for the club. Due to his involvement, Ursan quickly persuaded him to move from a regular member to Treasurer, and finally to Vice President of the club before the end of that semester. With Briggs’ executive attitude and Njike’s great leadership skills, they formed a perfect match with the sky as their limit. The club as a whole with their faculty advisor, Mr. Rolf Barber, created a platform where MC’s students get access to knowledge by interacting with fellow students and have featured speakers such as representatives of the White House, successful entrepreneurs and even employment training programs like Streetwise Partners. They have brought several resourceful people to their meetings and inspired many across the campus through their weekly discussion session. Their legacy continues with the current President, Landry Balbin with meetings every Friday from 2 pm to 4 pm in Pavilion 3 room 217.

Friday the 23rd of February, they held a discussion focusing on ‘Black Economics’ which I attended. This discussion was led by Briggs, followed with a screening of a short film video about a black WW2 veteran who received a purple heart, created by fellow club member Khari Eyèn Zamé Johnson. Shortly, it was followed by a discussion session between the members and club advisor Mr. Barber in relation to the topic and the video. Each member present got a chance to participate and share sincere opinions in relation to the topic.

The Great Minds Club clearly portrays and gives a sense of diversity, logical and fact-based conversation and sets a perfect example of what we call great minds. The club not only desires to grow but also wants its members to grow at a personal level while developing thoughts and skills to use in the world after college. They also have been active in introducing volunteer programs, and scholarship opportunities to its members.

If you are a student at MC, want to voice your opinions, gain knowledge, and build a fellowship then the Great Minds Club meeting is where you ought to be.