Students Took Charge of Cleveland School Skate Club
Students at Benjamin O. Davis High School assumed club leadership after faculty sponsorship ended.
Updated on Sept. 24, 2026 in Secondary Education
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Students at Cleveland's Benjamin O. Davis High School have taken over leadership of their campus skate club. The transition followed district-wide school consolidations that resulted in the departure of their former faculty sponsor.
Why it matters
The change ensures the skate club continues to operate despite the loss of adult supervision. The shift highlights how student-led initiatives can persist even when school districts undergo significant organizational mergers.
The skate club has operated for three years, with a total of 75 skateboards distributed to participants through support from Advocate SkateWorks. The group now conducts peer-led coaching sessions in the school's front parking lot.
The players
Benjamin O. Davis High School
This is a Cleveland-based secondary education institution formed by the merger of Digital Arts and Davis Aerospace and Maritime schools.
Dave Shaheen
He is the former faculty sponsor of the skate club who transferred to the School of One at East Tech during district consolidations.
Advocate SkateWorks
This organization has provided equipment and support to the student-led skate club.
The details
Following the merger of Digital Arts and Davis Aerospace and Maritime into a single institution, former sponsor Dave Shaheen transferred to the School of One at East Tech. With no faculty members available to sponsor the club, student leaders now coordinate by grouping members based on skill level for coaching.
Timeline
The skate club originated three years ago.
Dave Shaheen asked students to lead the club in Spring 2026.
The club held its first meeting of the school year in September 2026.
Culture Shift
The student-led model reflects a broader shift toward autonomous extracurricular management following the Cleveland Metropolitan School District's 2026 school consolidations. This transition underscores how peer-led groups are increasingly essential to maintaining social spaces after institutional restructuring.
Students involved in the club must now manage their own peer-led coaching schedules and utilize public spaces like the school parking lot for meetings. This shift places the burden of logistics and organization entirely on the students rather than school administration.
The takeaway
Student-led clubs demonstrate that campus organizations can persist through organizational turbulence with enough peer initiative. Future groups facing a lack of faculty sponsorship may look to this model to maintain their activities.
Further reading
Learn more about the extracurricular landscape in the Secondary Education section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Signal Cleveland.
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