(Part 2 of 2)
School clubs have so much to offer to students. Some serve their community, others expand our knowledge and skills, while some are just created to have fun. No school year is complete without extracurriculars, especially when our school has such a wide variety of them.
Perhaps you missed Club Rush or were too busy running a booth to check out every exciting extracurricular Mt. SAC Early College Academy (MECA) has to offer. Whatever the reason, we have a very exciting lineup this year of clubs both new and old, and hopefully, you find one that makes your week a little more fun!
Key Club
Meeting every other Monday at lunch in Mr. Cordero’s Spanish room, this service club specializes in providing volunteer events to participate in. During each meeting, these different and unique opportunities are announced. Members will sign up for them and will attend them outside of meetings. Key Club works directly with the international organization of the same name to expand its community outreach and connect with other high schools.
Club president and senior Arielle Fabros recounts, “Recently, Key Club, we did Rose Parade floats, so we went out and then helped decorate some of the floats.”
Though the main purpose of this club is to help out the community, it also supplies members with service hours, improves college resumes, and opens up scholarship opportunities.
King of the Court
This club was originally the school’s basketball team, created in 2022. King of the Court brought together people interested in the sport to play together during lunch, and last year, they even organized a tournament.
Mr. Nichols, the club advisor, explains, “But, what happened to King of the Court is that because we have so many students playing basketball at lunch– because we had a club –we talked to Dr. McDonell about running a tournament, so he went ahead and organized a basketball team. So the King of the Court Club kind of just turned into a basketball team, which we now have.”
As of now, KoTC is connected directly with the team and serves to fundraise during events. Last Fall Fest, they were able to buy new basketballs. If you wish to join the team, contact Mr. Nichols in room 8. However, you’ll always find people playing during lunch for fun.
Mu Alpha Theta
Mu Alpha Theta is a nationally recognized honors mathematics society. Not only does it look good on college applications, but it also adds a level of fun and excitement to learning about math. Some activities include the Pi Day celebration, math trivia, tutoring, and learning about different mathematicians.
Advisor and math teacher Ms. Sprauge said it best, gushing, “[Mu Alpha Theta is] for students that are kind of interested in like having more math in their day-to-day student lives and…they don’t have to necessarily pursue a math education”
Meetings are every first Wednesday at lunch in Ms. Sprauge’s room and students are accepted based on their math GPA.
Music Club
You’ve likely seen these members performing during Club Rush and Fall Fest. You’ve likely even seen them practicing in the Media Center or jamming out in the MPR after school. Music Club is for beginners and seasoned musicians alike to learn and practice playing music.
“People come in, and if they want to learn an instrument, we just show them the basics,” explained club staff member and senior Bryan Rosales, “If they already know something, then we just teach them some more advanced stuff so they can improve if they want.”
Across the executive board, they have pros in guitar, bass, and drums for anyone who wants to learn. They also teach more experienced members how to use recording software. The club acts as a safe space for musicians to build their skills and play with others. Most excitingly, they also perform for the school, though members are never pressured to join if they aren’t ready yet. They’re currently trying to plan more performances and will be playing the National Anthem for graduation.
They meet every other Thursday after school in Mr. Barriga’s room.
National Honors Society
Much like Mu Alpha Theta, NHS is a nationally recognized organization. Members of this club are high academic achievers with big goals in mind. There are four pillars of NHS: Scholarship, Service, Leadership, and Character. Not only do members have to keep a GPA of 3.5 or higher and apply with a letter of recommendation, but they also have to complete a number of volunteer hours by the end of the school year.
Though much work goes into this club, membership looks exceptional on a college application and even provides financial aid planning resources and scholarships. They meet every fourth Wednesday of every month in Mr. Nichols’s room during lunch.
News Broadcasting Club
For those who want a cross between Film Club and Journalism, there’s a brand new club here to deliver a scoop!
“Basically, once a month, what we’re gonna do is take over the ASB announcements and make it more visual,” explains club vice president and junior Annika Wotherspoon. “We’re collaborating with Journalism and ASB to make this happen”
Regardless of experience, students will learn about cameras, lighting, interviewing, scriptwriting, audio, editing, and public speaking in order to put together an efficient team and an entertaining broadcast for Timberwolves. They meet Tuesdays at lunch in room 17.
Newswriters Club
Newswriters Club is an extension of the Journalism class that aims to teach members new skills and make them better journalists. They admit members, regardless if they are in the class, rather they look for interest in anything journalism be it writing, broadcast, or photography. During meetings, they cover short topics on the basics of Journalism and cater the lessons on a personal level.
However, as of this semester, they aim to shift their attention to publishing another newspaper.
“So last semester, we obviously had the first printed version,” summarized club president and junior Samantha Ordanes, “and this semester we’re really focusing on perfecting that and hopefully making that a yearly or more-than-one-semester tradition.”
The club meets every 2nd Thursday of the month in Ms. Bell’s room.
Novelist’s Club
No other club at MECA is made for aspiring authors and creative writing hobbyists. Novelist’s Club takes the imaginative, the romantic, and the just plain wild and organizes it to make a collaborative novel. All the members participate in the world-building, character creation, plot development, and writing and aim to finish by the end of the year.
“So I think right now we’re working on a…mythology novel,” reported club president Autumn Pagan. They currently plan for it to be a modern fantasy complete with a vibrant world and characters guaranteed to steal your heart. “But we also have fun activities. We did one where we saw a random picture and we would come up with a story based on that picture.”
They meet every Wednesday at lunch in Ms. Bell’s room.
Paw Patrol
While many of our service clubs help people in need, this club’s goal is focused on animals in need. Every first and third Tuesday of every month in the media center, they often spend their time discussing outside activities to better furry friends without a place to call home.
“I know they volunteer a lot,” informs club advisor Mr. Sanchez, “They try to volunteer at shelters and donate stuff for pets and stuff like that.”
They welcome any animal lover looking to lend a hand and rack up their volunteer hours. Join Paw Patrol at lunch or contact their advisor to participate.
Quill and Scroll Honor Society
Connected directly with the Mt. SAC media team, the Quill and Scroll Honor Society is a club for writers with at least two years of experience in the team to collaborate with other experienced journalists and inspire each other.
“The club is to encourage and promote writing and creation in the media platform,” describes club president and senior Liana Mayo. She also acts as the Yearbook editor in chief.
Members are connected to the Quill and Scroll organization and provide media students with benefits outside of the classroom such as leadership, scholarship, and networking opportunities. Their meetings take place during the Yearbook/Journalism class.
Rubik’s Cube Club
If you thought our school couldn’t get nerdy enough, think again! Not many people have the resources to start learning a new skill like speedcubing, so this club provides just that.
“The purpose of it is to get people interested in cubing as a hobby,” gushes club president and senior, Everett Alquicira, “It’s been a passion of mine since middle school, so I want to see if we can get a culture started of Rubik’s Cubers.”
During their Friday lunch meetings, members (regardless of experience level) gather in the Media Center to learn and develop cubing skills in the hopes of competing locally. Novice Rubik’s Cubers spend their time learning the basics while more experienced Cubers work on timing themselves.
Everett goes on to say, “In the Spring semester, we want to get a full team. We need 10 members to start competing. We need to get everyone under 1 minute because some of the fastest times range from 30 seconds and 15 seconds.”
Running Club
Before they were even sports teams, Running Club had offered much-needed exercise to students every Monday in Ms. Yao’s PE room, after school. Each week, the club runs around or outside of the school, steadily progressing in length to push the members toward physical fitness. Oftentimes, they run a mile or so to the park and back, and every two months, they trek to 85°C Bakery Cafe for a treat.
President and freshman Matthew Diaz informs, “By the end of the year, we’re going to do a 5k; we have a lot of money saved up after three years.”
For anyone excited about running – or merely just looking to exercise more – Running Club excels in creating a community of active and fit Timberwolves.
Tea Culture Club
For all you tea-loving ladies and gentlemen, the Tea Culture Club is a social club meeting in Mr. Nichols’s room every second and fourth Friday during lunch. For the duration of their meetings, members drink new blends of tea, snack on pastries, listen to records, and talk with their friends. Catering is a collective effort of the club, but it’s never mandatory. Members can either merely stop by for a refreshing treat or stay for the entire duration of the club. To put it simply: it’s just a fun bi-monthly tea party!
Timberwolves’ Changing Stigma (TCS)
Every second Monday of the month at lunch, members meet in Ms. Contreras’s room and learn more about mental health.
Club advisor and counselor Ms. Contreras illustrates, “The purpose of TCS is to provide mental health awareness and to put out the stigma of mental health, so promoting inclusivity, kindness- just a safe space for students.
After checking in with the members, a topic of the month will be presented. And outside meetings, there are many posted resources as well as events such as mental health festivals. E-Board members even attend a mental wellness summit and occasionally official state meetings.
Youth Volunteer Club
Not every volunteer club is connected to a specific organization. Youth Volunteer Club is run only by its members and reaches out to a number of different organizations to better help the larger community.
“The purpose is to bring opportunities to MECA students that they might not see,” explains club president and senior, Isabella Quezada, “Different things to help our communities and volunteer outside of school. We recently just had an opportunity presented to us with Assemblymember Blanca Rubio, so we had a couple of our club members go to that.”
They plan to cover a wide range of volunteer mediums and have been discussing ways to raise money and donate to shelters. For anyone eager to explore their options and assist their city, this club is for them. They meet every first Monday of the month in Room 9.
UNICEF Club
Meeting every second Wednesday of the month during lunch in Ms. Banh’s room, UNICEF (aka the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund) is a service club (and organization) that strives to teach our student body about providing aid for children in burdensome situations.
According to club president Lauren Diep, meetings encompass “discussing current events and service opportunities to aid our community.” And as a service club, there are also many volunteer events to participate in outside of club meetings
UNICEF is directly connected to its parent organization and actively works with them to help children worldwide. Joining this club will allow you to do the same and positively impact the community.
(For more information on joining these clubs, you can check out the Club Directory.)
