Red Cross
In just one blood drive, East’s Red Cross Club was able to collect 46 units (pints) of blood which is able to save 138 lives.
The Red Cross Club is affiliated with the American Red Cross non-profit organization and has run many blood drives.
“The most exciting thing about being in the club is getting people to be first time donors,” senior and president Sofia Georgallis said.
The last blood drive happened Feb. 8, where a majority were first-time high school donors. For the next and last blood drive of the school year, the club is hoping to collect 60 units. If they hit that goal, they will receive a $1,000 grant from the American Red Cross.
The club has also participated in various events outside of just blood drives, including Totes for Hope, where they donated hygiene products to the community.
“There’s a lot of opportunities to work with the community,” Georgallis said.
The Red Cross Club hopes to reach out to high schoolers, as it’s “a really good club to get volunteer hours,” according to Georgallis, and you can get volunteer hours from just attending the meetings themselves.
To join the Red Cross Club you can email Sofia Georgallis at scgeorgallis@students.chccs.k12.nc.us or check out @echhs.redcrossclub on Instagram.
Women in Stem
According to a 2020 study conducted by East teacher William Vincent and colleague James McFarland, only 20 percent of students enrolled in East’s PLTW Engineering program are female. East’s Women in STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) Club hopes to change this statistic.
“Our goal is to get girls more exposure to different STEM fields and give them a place where they can explore things without pressure,” said club president Andrea Basuroski.
At Women in STEM meetings, members participate in competitions and research projects relating to STEM. Groups work together in projects either synchronously at their Thursday lunch meetings or asynchronously at home.
Sometimes, the meetings feature guest speakers, with the hope of “connecting [Women in Stem members] with different female role models,” according to Basuroski.
The Women in STEM club has a partnership with the UNC STEM Sisters club, where Women in STEM members can shadow a UNC student who studies topics related to their interests.
Last year the club also published a magazine related to various topics in STEM, where members had the opportunity to write articles about topics they were interested in.
If you’re interested in joining the club, reach out to Andrea Basuroski at @abasuroski@students.chccs.k12.nc.us.
Speedcubing
54 squares and six sides– do you think you could beat math teacher Nathaniel Day’s Rubik’s Cube time of 14.09 seconds? If you’re curious, then East’s Speedcubing club might be the place for you.
“It’s mostly a social club where people are learning,” club president Alexander Farhat said. “We’re just trying to get people interested in Rubik’s cubes and show our passion for it.”
With over 43 quintillion possible Rubik’s cube configurations, there are endless possibilities as to how to solve them.
“Not only is it really looking at it from a puzzle aspect, but also from a math aspect,” Farhat said.
Currently, the Speedcubing club teaches learners to solve Rubik’s cubes and also presents challenging puzzles like the 4D Rubik’s cube. In the future, Farhat hopes the club can enter in-school, and eventually, cross-school competitions.
“It’s kind of a niche thing,” president Alexander Farhat said. “A lot of people think Rubik’s Cubes are really geeky and nerdy.”
If you’re interested in joining, email ajfarhat@students.chccs.k12.nc.us, or drop by Mr. Day’s room (room 205) on Wednesdays at lunch.
Photo by Avery Tortora/The ECHO
