It feels like the Organization of Latin American Students (OLAS) has been around forever. However, it’s been at Watkins Mill High School for only 22 years and the founder of OLAS is none other than principal Vilma Najera!
OLAS was formed in 2001 by Najera who taught Spanish at Watkins Mill at the time. She ran the club until she left WMHS in 2008 before returning again as the principal in 2023.
“There was just sort of a need for representation, for kids to feel like they could connect with someone or people that looked like them or understood them,” Najera said. “It’s nice that it’s lasted so long. It has evolved and transformed. I just like to see [the club and students] grow and keep doing what they’re doing.”
The OLAS club performs at various school-sanctioned events such as pep rallies and freshman orientation. They focus specifically on traditional Latin styles of dance such as bachata, salsa, and reggaeton. “Everybody can dance, I never cut anybody from the dance team,” Najera said. “It’s nice to see students get better in dancing or get better at something and take pride in it.”
According to Najera, the formation of the club came easily. “I taught Spanish classes and the Spanish for Spanish speakers class,” Najera said. “I knew a lot of the students organically, and it just sort of happened. It’s nice to see students in a different light.”
The sense of community and camaraderie is an integral part of OLAS as the club is a great place to form friendships.“We have a really tight relationship, all of us. We hype each other up right before performing,” senior Natalie Gonzalez said. “It wasn’t easy for me to make friends, but OLAS has allowed me to open up and talk to a lot of people now.”
This new school year is proving to be a promising one for OLAS with many new exciting changes. “We have new coaches this year and they’re doing really good so far,” Gonzalez said. “We have new choreographies and new styles of dancing that we didn’t get to try out last year so it’s really exciting.”
It’s clear that the admiration is mutual. One of the OLAS’s main objectives is to make Najera proud. “I really want to show her that we have grown as a club,” Sophomore Camilla Pupo said. “[I want to] Show her that we’re doing a very good job representing our culture.”
