During the fall of 2017 junior Mason McCartney set out to begin the Teenage Republicans’ Club (TARS), striving to introduce young conservatives to Republican leadership and allowing them to connect with their like-minded peers. McCartney centers his club on productive and interesting conversation.

“I need to have something where teens are going to enjoy this and actually learn,” McCartney said.

While the majority of the students attending come to share their similar beliefs, the group strives for an open environment where students are free to disagree and challenge statements.

“I’m not going to say you have to be a strong conservative to come here because that doesn’t help anyone. Anyone who wants to disagree with me is welcome to come. It’s not exclusive,” McCartney said.

According to the Pew Research Center, 88 percent of Americans believe that fake news has caused at least some degree of confusion on basic facts. McCartney believes the best way to combat this confusion is to obtain information directly from its original source rather than secondary sources like mainstream news-reporting organizations.

“You can’t let other people dictate how you view a topic. It’s like asking a question for a test; you have to ask your teacher. You can’t ask your friends because they might have different views on it,” McCartney said.

The Teenage Republicans’ Club is open to anyone interested on Tuesdays at 7 am in B208 for open discussions.