Clubs are fundamental at Fieldston in order to highlight the community’s unique interests, talents, hobbies and affinities. They are designed to create spaces on campus in which students can express themselves while learning and pursuing passions beyond the typical classroom setting. This year — with over forty-one new clubs to choose from — students were given the opportunity to partake in a whole new set of activities and organizations. From the Math Team to the Juice and Cheese Tasting Club, the following list will highlight eleven exciting new clubs to keep an eye out for!
- The Physics Club
President: Ethan Tindel (Form VI)
Vice Presidents: Leo Feng (Form VI), Morgan Sheehan (Form VI)
The Physics Club, created out of Tindel’s passion for physics and his hope to get others interested in it, aims to foster a space for physics lovers and learners alike to discuss this branch of science and better their understanding of it. When asked about the goals of the club, Tindel expressed that, “The goal of our club is to provide an inclusive community for any student at Fieldston to be a part of as much or as little as they wish.” The club also intends on introducing fun and intriguing physics concepts to members, carrying out demonstrations of said concepts and helping junior members of the club with both homework and test preparation. The leaders of the club hope that the Physics Club will allow members to fully appreciate the study of physics and as a result become better physics students.
- The Fashion Show Committee
Leaders: Eli Tauber (Form VI), Grace Negroni (Form IV), Paloma Hostin (Form V), Shayna Sacks (Form IV), Rachel Stulman (Form IV)
The Fashion Show Committee is literally making Fieldston its runway. Though the club is new this year, the fashion show has long been one of Fieldston’s most beloved traditions. The one premise: fabric is not allowed to be used as a material therefore encouraging participants to think innovatively throughout the design process. All current club leaders are individuals who have previously participated in the fashion show and they all hold the common sentiment that it is important for the show to continue. Regarding the club, leader Tauber expressed, “We hope people who are interested in art/fashion participate and help continue [this] exciting Fieldston-exclusive tradition!” The committee aims to bring multiple student perspectives to the planning of the show, allowing all club members to have a say throughout the process.
- Trans Club
Leaders: Ash Georgiades (Form IV), Kol Riddle (Form IV), Cory Metz (Form IV)
The Trans Club is a supportive community for people with trans and trans-questioning identities to have discussions about shared experiences, make new friends and participate in many different activities. Club leader Georgiades stated that, “all of [the] leaders were in the LGBT+ affinity group last year, and noticed a focus on sexuality. Although being trans can be related to sexuality, we wanted to create a space that was focused on trans identities with a community of supportive people.” Georgiades also mentioned that the goal of the club is to foster an environment where trans and questioning people can feel accepted, supported and have pride in their identities. The club aims to be a space in which members can be themselves and understand one another on a deeper level, all the while respecting that not everybody is out to the larger school community.
- The SketchUp Club
Leaders: James Herzberg (Form IV), Alex Bromfield (Form IV)
The SketchUp Club is building a community for students who are interested in design and architecture. Herzberg’s inspiration for the SketchUp Club was “[my] shared passions for architecture, design and engineering [which] brought me and Alex Bromfield together to create [our] club.” The club will teach members how to use Sketchup, a 3D computer modeling design program, in order to create their own renderings, designs and creations. The ultimate goal is for members to become comfortable with the program so that they are able to think creatively in terms of their own designs and venture outside of their architectural/design comfort zones. The SketchUp Club will teach fundamental SketchUp skills and, all the while, encourage experimentation in various forms of architecture and engineering.
- Math Team
Leaders: Lamees Shalaby (Form IV), Amelia Kwong (Form IV)
Fieldston’s brand new Math Team is solving the equation with a non-overly competitive dynamic. When searching for a math team to join outside of school, club leader Kwong discovered many teams required time she did not have, but she was still eager to get involved. Alongside fellow club leader Shalaby, she researched teams that served as an introduction to competition math and ultimately found the solution was to create her own at Fieldston. The two established the Math Team with the goal of creating a community that offers unconventional math challenges and competitions to anybody and everybody who would be interested. Regarding the goals of the club, Kwong stated, “We wanted to make a club that has a healthy team atmosphere, since math is often seen as just a school subject. We are trying to be the opposite of a selective club – we encourage anyone to join and try out a contest!” The team will be centered around the New York Math League and will hold monthly competitions designed to encourage the use of creative problem solving skills.
- The Biking Club
Leader: Lamine Camara (Form V)
The Biking Club takes members along for the ride with bike trips through Central Park, Van Cortlandt Park and the Hudson River Waterfront Greenway. Club leader Camara has always loved biking and used it as a way to de-stress and unwind. The biking club will allow other students of varied biking experiences and levels to, in the words of Camara, “decompress and have fun for a few hours.” With the stress that can accompany the start of a new school year, the Biking Club will provide a community in which members can breathe and focus merely on having a good time while riding through a spectrum of enjoyable trails in New York.
- Digital Defenders
Leaders: Abby Friedman (Form V), Selma Mahmud (Form V)
After the overturning of Roe v. Wade, club leader Friedman felt helpless when it came to enacting change as most forms of volunteering were designated to people 18+. When she stumbled upon the Women’s March Organization, a sub-organization of Digital Defenders, she was inspired to create a space at Fieldston for students interested in advocating for abortion rights. The club’s objective is to support the Women’s March Organization in nationalizing abortion access through Digital Defenders, which inhibits the spread of misinformation regarding abortions. Friedman hopes “members gain the mindset that they can make a difference no matter their age and that we will fight for as long as it takes.” If interested, reach out to 24afriedman@ecfs.org or visit https://www.womensmarch.com/initiatives/digital-defenders for more information.
- The Juice and Cheese Tasting Club
Leaders: Isaac Holtz (Form VI), William Chesney (Form VI), Diana Bienstock (Form V), Addy Gorton (Form VI)
It came to the attention of the Fieldston community, during the club fair, that there were two cheese clubs. After much tension and passive aggressiveness during the fair, the two rivals came together and a civil merging of clubs occured. Now, after much concern, the club is being run by the four leaders harmoniously. When asked about what inspired the club’s creation, Holtz detailed, “It all began one day when we were walking down the street and happened to pass by a cheese shop. The idea struck us right then and there: the cheese tasting club.” While for Beinstock and Gorton, the idea came about after running the successful cheese ALP, “It’s Gouda Brie a Grate Day,” last spring. The merged club will offer an experience different from Fieldston’s “typical” club in that it will be centered entirely around trying various cheeses and examining their history. From the club, members will gain an intricate understanding of the complexities of cheese making, what makes one cheese different from the next and the riveting history and culture of cheese.
- GirlTalk Magazine
Leader: Eve Kaplan (Form IV)
GirlTalk, an intersectional feminist magazine with chapters around the country, is making its way to Fieldston via Kaplan’s GirlTalk Magazine club. The publication was established in 2017 and provides a way for young writers to hone their craft via literary and artistic endeavors within the magazine. Kaplan stated “Often students feel they don’t have a voice in political matters or are [un]able to create change without a vote in politics, GirlTalk looks to change this narrative and be a canvas and outlet for developing writers and artists.” GirlTalk allows anybody to get involved and become a featured writer, editor or artist depending on their commitment to the magazine.
- The Camera Club
Leaders: Christian Martins da Silva (Form III), Noah Bilerman (Form III)
The Camera Club simply seems picture perfect. Run by freshmen Bilerman and Martins da Silva, the Camera Club is a community in which both videographers and photographers can meet to share their work, collaborate and discuss camera gear and technique. The group is working on getting point and shoot cameras for club members to use. It is ultimately a space for creativity and inspiration through discussion of a shared passion for cameras and photography. Bilerman added about the club, “We hope our members will gain a deeper understanding of this art form and be able to create some amazing works.”
- Invisible Hands at Fieldston
Leaders: Talia Gold (Form V), Lili Hacking (Form V)
Invisible Hands at Fieldston, a club that works directly with the organization Invisible Hands, aims to get students involved with combating food insecurity and supporting community members in need. In the words of Gold, one of the club’s leaders, “Invisible Hands is a volunteer-powered, youth-led organization providing safe, anonymous, free delivery of food, medicine, and other essentials to those most in need.” Club members can expect to be involved with food pantries, mutual aid groups and religious institutions through bringing food and resources to individuals who are unable to afford their own. Gold describes the time she and Hacking have spent working with the organization as “incredibly empowering and fun” as well as important hence why they decided to extend the organization to Fieldston via the Invisible Hands at Fieldston club.
Whether it’s the Biking Club or Digital Defenders, clubs prove there is truly something for everyone at Fieldston. So Eagles, what new club will you get involved in?
