Stinger Stories

Dear West Side Families,

We are wrapping up February with lots of learning and growth happening in every corner of the hive. This week, we also kicked off our annual Booster Fun Run! Each year, the Booster Fun Run supports a large project to enhance the learning environment or school. Projects have included - Innovation Lab, STEM Lab, Outdoor Learning Center, Turf Field, and more! You can read more about this year's project below. We appreciate your support for the duration of the program and look forward to a super Fun Run event on March 4th. Over the next few weeks, we have many other exciting school events including the school production of Finding Nemo Jr., Teacher Appreciation Week, and Pastries with Parents. Mark your calendars, we hope to see you there!

As always, if I can better support your child please do not hesitate to reach out at any time. There's no place like West Side!

Warm regards,

Christina

Christina Wagoner, Ed.D.

Principal

Thank you for your support of this year's Fun Run! We've had a great week with the Booster team helping support our school. This year's Fun Run will support the completion of our special area projects including a Chicken Coop for the STEM Lab and iPads for the Art Classroom. Additionally, funds will be used to add interactive learning experiences to students and give 10% back for teachers to use in the classroom! Students can continue to receive pledges at mybooster.com until March 4th.

Families are invited to support their child at the Fun Run event on March 4th. Grade level Fun Run times are below. We love to have parents gather to cheer on our Stingers! Students should wear running shoes and athletic bottoms to school this day. All students will receive a Fun Run t-shirt. Will we reach our goal and see Dr. Wagoner kiss a chicken!?

Congratulations to our very own Mrs. Hunter (2nd Grade) and Mrs. Harpe (Special Education Teacher) who were recognized as the Marietta City Schools Co-Teaching Team of the Year! This special award honors one co-teaching team in the district for demonstrating excellence in co-teaching practices, working collaboratively to create learning a learning environment that supports student success. District leadership selects the recipients for this award after a comprehensive review of nominations across all 12 schools in Marietta City. We are SO proud of Mrs. Hunter & Mrs. Harpe - & grateful for the impact they make every day in the lives of their students!

Read your February 2026 edition of the The Honeycomb Headlines at the link below. Written, edited, and published by our 3rd-5th grade student newspaper club, we invite all families to read along in Stinger Stories. All 2nd-5th grade students will receive a printed copy of the newspaper for the latest school and community news.

HONEYCOMB HEADLINES - FEBRUARY EDITION

PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS HERE

NEW! Digital FAN GRAMS available for the cast of Finding Nemo Jr! All digital fan grams will be printed for performers and placed in the Bravo Board display! This is great to share with friends and family that are unable to attend in person. You can also purchase the traditional fan grams at MPAC the night of both shows.

BUY DIGITAL FAN GRAMS HERE

PURCHASE YOUR SPOT HERE

Bravo to our Peter Pan Jr. cast! It was a wonderful musical production taking audiences on a trip to Neverland. Thank you to the West Side community for showing your support to our cast at the community performances.

Welcome back from mid winter break! We look forward to warmer temps and many PTA sponsored events this spring. Keep an eye on social media and Beeline folders for announcements and ways to get involved with PTA this spring!

*Make your Direct Donation on Givebacks.

Any amount of giving helps support our students and teachers! Direct Donations are invested directly back into our school in lieu of year long fundraising efforts. Our 2025-2026 Legacy Projects include the revitalized outdoor dining area and SPARK for Specials projects.

*Be sure to follow West Side PTA on Instagram!

Instagram @westsideelementarypta

West Side Elementary School PTA Executive Board

Co Presidents: Kelli Bollman and Angela Kuehme

Co Vice-Presidents: Sarah Allen and Meghan Daniel

Treasurer: Anna Cipolla

Secretary: Rachael Brunelle

Parliamentarian: Rebecca Jones

West Side will celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week on March 9th-13th. Our wonderful PTA Teacher Appreciation committee chairs have planned a fantastic week to celebrate and honor our hardworking West Side staff. Thanks to your Direct Donations and local business partners, our teachers will be well loved throughout the week with meals, coffee, and more!

How can you help? Please consider sending in a homemade card from you or your Stinger! Our teachers love them!

You can also sign-up to help stock the teacher's lounge with snacks and drinks all week long, or sponsor an item for the salad luncheon. Links below!

SIGN-UP TO STOCK THE TEACHER'S LOUNGE

BRING AN ITEM FOR THE STAFF SALAD LUNCHEON

*Order Spirit Wear on Givebacks.

Need to order a long sleeve t-shirt or sweatshirt for the last stretch of winter? Get your size before they sell out! Order anytime and it will come home with your Stinger. Spirit Wear orders are fulfilled once a week, all year long!