Anything from domestic issues to international conflicts are discussions that occur in the Unconditional Student Foundation Socratic Organization. They cover a wide range of topics and dig deep into how to solve problems in their own community with volunteer and charity work.

Club president senior Johnathon Chang formed the USF Socratic Organization after being involved with an organization called the Unconditional Student Foundation over the summer as a board member.

“This organization aimed to spread awareness of poverty and hunger throughout our community through personal application in volunteer and charity work,” Chang said. “As I was discussing potential ways to spread this growing awareness to the youth, I thought about philosophy and the applications of learning about world hunger and poverty through philosophical debate. This sparked the initiation of a philosophy club at our school.”

According to co-president senior Shwetha Swaminathan, the club reaches out to their members by addressing what they feel about certain topics hands on.

“We wanted a club or organization that would actually address the altruistic attitude in students and find a way to foster that,” Swaminathan said.

Swaminathan and Chang said they both wanted to push their club to acknowledge the volunteering needs of the community.

“We believe that it is with that moral mindset that people will be more willing to serve — not just because it is required, but because they want to,” Swaminathan said. “The reason we started this club was to deviate a little bit from what USF traditionally does and take it to the next level by addressing the root cause of habitual volunteering.”

For Swaminathan, her interest in the club started in middle school when her and a group of friends started this group to raise funds for Ryan’s Well Foundation and UNICEF. It then continued on through Jasper High School and has now expanded to Plano Senior, Plano West, Heritage High and Centennial High in Frisco.

“This was originally a philanthropic volunteer based club, targeting the NHS students who needed hours,” Swaminathan said. “But then the idea of philosophy or a ‘socratic organization’ came into play.”

Discussions called thought experiments are just one of the many things they do during their club meetings.

“Thought experiments are a form of philosophical discussion that utilize a hypothetical story to test one’s morals and ethics when it comes down to decision making,” Chang said. “Furthermore, we also debate over certain ethical dilemmas that are prevalent within our government and economy. Lastly, we are trying to prepare students for philosophy essay contests that are completely optional.”

According to Swaminathan, these thought experiments are also another way to entertain and engage their club members.

“Let’s be a bit real,” Swaminathan said. “Sometimes sitting in a circle and discussing philosophy isn’t all that fun. That’s why we try to make things interesting by holding thought experiments. It’s actually quite amusing to see how some of the situations and thought experiments play out in the end.”

Out of all the things they do in the USF Socratic Organization, Chang said seeing the unique perspectives of the other students on worldly topics is the best thing about the club.

“Each person sees things differently due to their upbringing and personal past experiences,” Chang said. “So it is incredible to see how those experiences can mold a person’s morals and ethics, allowing me to view new things through a completely different lens.”