Impact Of Extracurricular Activity Involvement On Student Achievement At Three Tennessee Rural High Schools

School leaders continue to try to find ways to improve students’ GPA and test scores. Research has shown that extracurricular activities can have a positive effect on academic achievement. This study aimed at finding the sweet spot of the amount of participation in extracurricular activities in order to maximize students’ GPA and test scores. Eleventh grade students from three rural East Tennessee high schools were sampled to determine the appropriate amount of level of involvement in extracurricular activities. Student transcripts were used to determine the GPA of the students at the end of their 11th grade year, as well as their ACT score for March test during 11th grade. Students were placed into one of four categories based on their level of participation in extracurricular activities: non-participants, participation in 1–2 activities, participation in 3–4 activities, and participation in 5 or more activities. This researcher found that there is a significant difference in ACT scores for students who participate in extracurricular activities. In addition, this study found that there is a significant difference in students’ GPA for students who participate in extracurricular activities. This study determined that the sweet spot for maximizing academic achievement is participating in 3–4 extracurricular activities; therefore, school officials need to encourage students to participate in multiple extracurricular activities.