Spring PA FUNdraiser: Wednesday, March 19, 6-9 PM at The Hudson

Student Led Conferences: Thursday, March 20th, 4:30-7:30pm and Friday, March 21st, 12:45-2:45pm 

No School due to Student Led Conferences: Friday, March 21st

Next WESS PA Meeting: Tuesday, March 25

Spring is around the corner and so is the WESS Spring PA FUNdraiser - less than a week away! We hope you will join us next Wednesday as we come together to celebrate our wonderful WESS community.

On March 11-12, WESS had the incredible opportunity to host the Expeditionary Learning (EL) Credentialing Team. Since our founding in 2015, we have worked toward this milestone, and being recognized as a candidate for credentialing is a testament to the joyful, experiential learning that happens here every day. The EL Education Credential honors schools that nurture students’ academic, social, and emotional growth while demonstrating excellence and equity in education. This process is deeply tied to our commitment to continuous improvement and equity, ensuring that WESS remains a place where all students thrive. To read more and see other WESS news go here.

Also, be sure to check out the Principal Message for March here on the WESS website.

Please join us for the March PA meeting on Tuesday, March 25th. We will be sharing information about all things WESS.

Until then, we hope you take some time to think about what has been beneficial or meaningful about your child's time at WESS and renew your commitment and connection to the WESS community in whatever way makes sense to you. 

Moving Forward Together,

WESS Parent Association

Our Spring PA FUNdraiser kickoff was a success - thank you to all who attended and donated basket items! 

Our annual PA FUNdraiser will take place at The Hudson on Wednesday, March 19th, at 6:00 PM. This is our largest fundraising event of the year, and we need your support to make it a success! The proceeds from the auction will help fund class trips, staff development, classroom supplies, technology, books, parent education, and much more.

Here’s how you can help:

1. Purchase a ticket to the event. 
2. Volunteer at the FUNdraiser
3. Donate an item for the auction itself.

If you have any questions about the FUNdraiser or are interested in volunteering in some way please reach out to Karyn Gooden at karyn@westendsecondary.com. 

The 6th grade after school social last Friday was a wonderful success. Thanks to the 6th grade parents’ very generous donations, students enjoyed snacks and drinks and all students who wanted one took home a Polaroid souvenir.There was a great turnout of approximately 75 students all jumping around to music and playing with beach-themed decorations. We look forward to the next middle school social event!

School Newspaper:Exciting News! The WESS Gazette, our official newspaper, is back! Read the latest articles and learn more info about it at wessgazette.org. We are gearing up for our very first print edition and would be incredibly grateful for any donations to help bring this project to life.

ROBOTICS

WESS Robotics team competes in Hudson Valley!

The WESS high school robotics team, Space Junk, competed in the FIRST Hudson Valley Regional Competition held at Rockland Community College. The competition was held from March 6th-8th, and featured teams from all over New York State, and some from other parts of the country. The team did great!! They will be working on improving their robot over the next month, so that they can compete again in April, at the NYC Regional Competition!

SPORTS

WESS winter sports teams and athletes had a great season.

The WESS boys basketball team made it to the playoffs and won WESS' first basketball playoff game in the first round.

The indoor track team had another strong season. Our athletes worked incredibly hard all season towards the goal of competing at cities and representing WESS where we had 5 athletes compete. As one of a handful of small schools at championships, it speaks to the dedication and hard work of this community, including our athletes, parents, and all the WESS staff who support us.

Our girls who played for LAGUARDIA basketball made it to the 2nd round of playoffs which was a great experience.

Spring sports are in full swing both with WESS teams and on teams at host schools. Sports include baseball, softball, tennis, flag football, handball, lacrosse, rugby, track, vollegyball, and more.

Ultimate frisbee is also coming back to WESS through the DISCNY league.

Extracurricular clubs play a vital role in enriching our students’ high school experience by fostering creativity, leadership, teamwork, and personal growth. Whether students are looking to explore a new passion, develop skills, or connect with peers who share their interests, there’s something for everyone in our diverse club offerings. Getting involved is a great way for students to engage with the school community, build meaningful connections, and develop new skills outside the classroom. This information can also be found under the news section on the WESS Website.

WESS PA Spring FUNdraiser: Come join in the FUN! Please reach out to Karyn Gooden - karyn@westendsecondary.com for any ways to help with the PA Spring FUNdraiser. Click here to volunteer for the event. It takes a village of volunteers to host a FUNdraiser! 

Thank you to the many families who have taken the time to Give Back to WESS so far this year. Your contributions are essential to enriching the experience of every student at WESS. If you haven’t donated yet, please follow the links below to ensure the PA can continue to support the arts, sciences, sports, Passages ceremonies, professional development, and so much more.

VENMO (Free, no fee - click icon below)

PA Treasurer Account: @wess-pa

Please indicate “Family Giving” in the Note

If prompted for a code, use: 5058

PAYPAL(This method of donating includes an automatic monthly payment option; WESS pays a small fee per each credit card donation - click gift box or PayPal icon below)

STOCK - If you’d like to donate stock click on the stock icon below or contact patreasurer@westendsecondary.com

CAN YOUR DONATION BE DOUBLED? Many employers participate in a corporate matching program. We are able to provide any necessary information. Contact patreasurer@westendsecondary.com.

Wonder  Compassion  Resilience  Creativity

Membership Toolkit and How to Use It

When a family joins the WESS community, they are automatically added to the PA Membership Toolkit database. Membership Toolkit (MT) is the program that the WESS Parent Association uses to stay in touch with WESS parents and provide you with important information via emails and newsletters like the one you're reading right now. The fact that you have received this newsletter means that you are in the MT database.

The MT database is based on but separate from the official contact information that you provided to WESS via the blue card when your student(s) enrolled. That information is for the WESS administration only and is NOT accessible to parents. So, in order to make it possible and easy for WESS parents (and students) to find and keep in touch with each other, the PA created a user-friendly directory at Membership Toolkit.

To access Membership Toolkit and, therefore, the directory, click here, click on "login," and follow the prompts based on whether you are a returning user or a new user. If you've never logged on to MT before, you are a new user. Simply create an account and then you will find your contact information already available. Once you have created an account, you can edit your contact information and customize your profile including what, if any, information is made public in the directory.

MT is available as both a desktop and app option. It’s a great idea to have both for your convenience.

Note: If ever your contact information should change, it’s most important to change it on the official DOE blue card through WESS but it’s equally smart to also update it at Membership Toolkit if you want WESS folks to be able to reach you. 

If you have any questions or challenges using Membership Toolkit, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Liz Sorem and Mary-Elizabeth Vachon, WESS PA Communications Secretary.

West End Secondary School Parent Association

wesspa.org