East Mecklenburg students come from many middle school areas such as Albemarle Road, Carmel, Queens Grant, Crestdale, Eastway, J.T.

[6] The AutoTech program and Culinary department offer technical skills courses to those students not interested in intensive college prep.

East Meck competes in the Southwestern 4A conference of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA).

Based on its proportion of graduating seniors taking AP and IB tests, East was ranked among the 500 top high schools in the nation by Newsweek.

[14][15] In April 2008, senior Luis Rojas was named the National High School Chef of the Year by Johnson & Wales University in the dessert category, garnering him more than $80,000 in scholarship money.

[16] The Eagle, East Mecklenburg's school newspaper, was named a Paper of Distinction in 2008 by the North Carolina Scholastic Media Association.