With the latest Pinewood Club Fair in September, eight new clubs have joined the expanding list of student-led clubs: AI Club, Art and Wellness Club, Botball Club, Chess Club, Cooking Club, La Mesa de Español Club, Janyaa Club and Voice and Volume Club.
Art and Wellness Club is one of the most popular new clubs this year, led by seniors Meghana Simhadri and Emma Hwang and advisor Sasha Vu. Students can work on arts and crafts projects where they can freely express themselves and relieve stress through their work.
“We wanted there to be a space on campus for people to just relax and come together to enjoy art,” Simhadri said.
Sophomore Ian Hsiao leads the Chess Club with the help of advisor Stuart Hamilton. The main objective of this club is to provide Pinewood students with the opportunity to learn and compete in the world of chess.
Sophomore Kyle Ma leads the Botball Club, which focuses on developing robots to compete in local tournaments. The goal is to provide students with an opportunity to think and work like an engineer.
The Artificial Intelligence Club aims to further help students learn engineering skills by learning about artificial intelligence, one of the fastest growing sectors in today’s job marketplace. The club was created by sophomores Dhruv Gupta, Jake Reynders and Alan Skelley with the help of advisor Bill Bates.
“We plan to commit time to research AI and evaluate how… it is applicable in our lives and in the Pinewood community,” Skelley said.
The Voice and Volume Club, led by juniors Anya Bhaskar and Ana Weinstock, is committed to empowering students to volunteer in areas like education in low-income communities. They collaborate with RISE (Reaching and Inspiring Success Through Education), a nonprofit education organization in East Palo Alto.
Cooking Club was established by juniors Sam Grillo and Pedro Aldaco, is dedicated to teaching students how to cook with a hands-on approach.
To strengthen Upper Campus’ cultural awareness, La Mesa de Español Club was created by senior Anika Nambisan and junior Annabelle Eaton.
“We facilitate discussions on current events in Latin America, offer tutoring support, not just for Spanish class but for any subject, and most importantly, we eat Latin American snacks,” Nambisan said.
Last but not least, Janyaa Club, led by junior Lacey Armistead, raises money for the Janyaa Organization, an organization dedicated to providing education to underprivileged youth in India.
As the list of clubs continues to rise over the years, students at Pinewood will gain the opportunity to learn, help and actively participate in a plethora of extracurricular endeavors.
“It’s great to see members of the Pinewood community taking part in their interests and strengthening their bonds,” Skelley said.
