Jason Scott wanted to create a world where people could be free to create, dream, and be themselves. Through Aggie Fish Club, his vision has come true. Aggie Fish Club is an organization that takes the dreams of individuals and makes them realities. The relationships that are developed are full of love and understanding, the Aggie way, and the motivational speakers give members a feeling of self-importance.
All of this began as a vision.
As a freshman in Fish Camp ‘88, future founder of AFC, Jason Scott ‘92, and future student body president Steve Beller ‘92, met in a DG and became great friends by the first day. They realized they shared common interests and were excited for this new adventure here at Texas A&M. Both were fish in the Corps and were two of many freshman who became moved by the Aggie Spirit. Fish Camp changed these two young men and motivated them to get really involved at Texas A&M.
When they came back to campus, they were longing for the atmosphere that Fish Camp had provided.They wanted to experience what other freshman were experiencing. At the time, there were only two leadership organizations on campus; Student Government had Fish Aides and the MSC had Freshman Leadership Dynamics. The latter organization was not very strong and was falling apart. In 1990, Jason, Steve, Steven Matthews ‘93, and Casey Motl ‘93 took it upon themselves to revamp this Freshman Leadership Organization in the MSC and renamed it Aggie Leaders of Tomorrow (ALOT). Jason was the director of ALOT for two years, and Casey was the assistant director. This was a huge learning process because the vision of ALOT for Jason, Steve, Steven, and Casey did not coincide with the MSC’s vision. Frustrated, Jason left the organization for a few months, and Casey took control. After his break from ALOT, Jason realized he had burned out and felt he could not contribute anything more to the MSC-run organization. The spark of AFC emerged in 1988 while Jason Scott was at Fish Camp; the idea was pushed forward in 1990 with the revival of ALOT; the dream became a reality in the summer of 1992.
Jason and the others felt the freshmen at A&M were seriously missing out on opportunities to get involved. Why couldn’t the Fish Camp atmosphere last nine months? In 1992, these men went to Student Activities, wrote a constitution, and started Aggie Fish Club. It was a FLO where they could inspire and create. Aggie Fish Club could give freshman values and friendships. The freshmen could show their true personalities and dreams in a family environment.
Aggie Fish Club started in the fall of 1992 with two directors, 20 counselors and 40 fish. They picked the “cream of the crop” right from the start. The first buddy huddles were called “jawbreakers”, and the counselors enjoyed taking the freshman on scavenger hunts, going on road trips, and have good, old-fashioned fun. Student Activities gave AFC $500, but they needed more money to run the organization. Freshmen were required to pay dues, which helped, but the directors paid at least $6,000 out of their own pockets during those two years to get AFC on its feet. This figure was so ridiculous because the directors didn’t know how to budget their money, and they constantly were asking for money from their parents. There was a lack of structure, and operation of the organization took its toll on the directors. In the spring of 1993, Casey burned out on Aggie Fish Club and stepped down as director. Jason took over for the last few months of the semester, and a lot of evaluation was done because many changes needed to be made. Directors Amy Klinkovsky ‘95 and Christie Barrett ‘95 saw that these changes were made, and they helped turn AFC into what it needed to become. They polished the fine edges by making the organization more structured, serious, and mature.
Aggie Fish Club has made a name for itself on and around campus that others can see. It has blossomed into an organization that produces friends and leaders that are making changes. Members pride themselves on balanced involvement, active leadership, integrity, maturity, passion, and service, all traits that an effective leader should exemplify.