West Side Story 2.0
Thursday, March 1st, 2018
2018 Snow Week King: Henry Claussen!
2nd Quarter Shining Scarlets
Congratulations to all of our Shining Scarlet Award winners!
Security Updates at West
We have added a call box to door #19 and door #26. The locks on doors 19 and 26 will be programmed to unlock during passing time and lock again after passing time.
Students and visitors who need to enter the main building will be able to buzz the call box to alert security at the main entrance desk. The security person in the annex will be available to open the annex door for students, and redirect any visitors without a visitor pass to check in with an ID in the main building.
A Message from Principal Blasing
Dear Mankato West families,
Over the next couple of weeks you may hear your child speak about the two National School Walkout Protests for the Florida victims.
Here are the event details that we have so far:
The National School Walkout, planned by Women’s March organizers, will be on March 14 at 10 am in each time zone. It calls for students, faculty, parents, and others to walk out of school for 17 minutes — one minute for each person who was killed in the Florida school shooting.
The March for Our Lives is scheduled for March 24. The details are not specific but students and activists plan to march on Washington, DC, and other US cities.
We will continue to listen and support our students and their questions at school as you are at home. We also realize this is an opportunity for learning so please utilize the resource link we sent last week in our letter to help facilitate conversations around this difficult topic.
We will follow our attendance policy which is attached for your review (Mankato West Student Handbook Attendance Policy ). Thank you for your continued partnership with us so we can provide an informed, safe, learning environment for all of our students and staff.
Sincerely,
Sherri Blasing
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AP Exam Registration
To find out more about registration and to register online, please see the attachment below or go directly to the following link: https://user.totalregistration.net/AP/241485 .
PSEO Student/Parent Informational Meeting
On Monday, March 12th at 6:00pm in the West Cafeteria, there will be an student/parent meeting for any current freshman, sophomore or junior who is interested in PSEO for the 2018-2019 school year.
Post-Secondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) is a program that allows 10th, 11th and 12th grade students to earn both high school and college credit while still in high school, through enrollment in and successful completion of college-level courses at eligible participating post-secondary institutions.
Specifically, information and application forms for Minnesota State University (Mankato), South Central College, and Bethany Lutheran College will be discussed and dispersed at this meeting.
If you have any questions about this, please contact Ms. Ottmar in the Counseling Office.
Monday, Mar 12, 2018, 06:00 PM
Mankato West High School, South Riverfront Drive, Mankato, MN, USA
AVID Seniors Earn Mega Dollars for College
Mankato West AVID 12 students are on a roll earning scholarship money and getting their FAFSA award letters.
So far of the 19 seniors in AVID, 7 have been awarded scholarships totaling $495,652 (4 year totals) and FAFSA (Federal Aid $, 1 year totals since it changes each year) of $12,607 for a total of $508,259...
Yes, over a HALF MILLION DOLLARS! And that is only for 7 students. The rest of the students are awaiting their award letters, and each student will be completing at least 10 scholarship applications before May 15.
Congratulations to all of our AVID 12 students!
Winter Sports Recap and Championship Information
Boys Alpine Ski
The boys alpine ski team won its 6th straight Big 9 Conference championship on January 26. Senior Jaidan Rollings and junior Nick Bohlke qualified for the state meet where Rollings placed 4th and Bohlke placed 36th.
Girls Alpine Ski
The girls alpine ski team also won its 6th straight Big 9 Conference championship on January 26. They qualified as a team for their 6th straight MSHSL state meet where they came away with a strong second-place finish thanks to the efforts of team members Kate Nelson, Briggs Carlson, Hailey Kopischke, Lindsey Sievers, Rachel Sievers, Shanalyn Just, and Breck Carlson. Individually, Briggs Carlson and Kate Nelson also finished in the top 16 with Carlson taking 6th place and Nelson taking 12th place.
Boys Basketball
The boys basketball team has a 14-11 record and has one regular season game remaining:
- 3/2 - home vs. Owatonna
Section play begins on Tuesday, March 6. The seeding for Section 2AAA will be completed the weekend prior.
- 3/6 - section quarterfinals at high seed
- 3/10 - section semifinals at Gustavus
- 3/15 - section finals at Gustavus
MSHSL State Boys Basketball Tournament Information
Girls Basketball
The girls basketball team has a 19-7 record for the regular season. Section play began on Tuesday, February 27 with the Scarlets receiving a bye in the first round of play. The girls will take on New Ulm in the Section 2AAA semifinals this Saturday at MSU.
- 3/3 - section semifinals at MSU-Mankato
- 3/8 - section finals at Gustavus
MSHSL State Girls Basketball Tournament Information
Gymnastics
The girls gymnastics team placed 4th at the Big 9 Conference meet on Saturday, February 10. Taryn Sellner was the Big 9 Conference champion on vault, beam, and floor. She also placed 2nd in the all-around competition.
The team placed 2nd at the Section 2A meet where Taryn Sellner (vault, beam, floor, bars, and all-around), Makenzie Yaeger (bars, beam, and floor), and Kristen Lageson (vault) qualified individually for the MSHSL State Gymnastics Meet. At the State, Sellner placed 8th on the vault, 23rd on the uneven bars, 7th on the balance beam, 4th on the floor, and 5th in the all-around. Yaeger placed 21st on the uneven bars, 45th on the balance beam, and 45th on the floor. Lageson placed 34th on the vault.
Boys Hockey
The boys hockey team finished their season with an 8-17-1 record after playing a tough game against Rochester Lourdes in the Section 1A tournament.
Girls Hockey
The girls hockey team ended their season a 15-11-1 record in the regular season and earned the #2 seed in Section 3A. The team worked hard and ended their season this past week with a strong showing against Marshall High School in the Section 3A Championship game.
Boys Swim and Dive
The boys swim and dive team finished 6th at the Big 9 Conference Meet in Rochester last weekend. The qualified XX swimmers for the State tournament at last week's Section 1A meet.
Individual qualifiers include Dan Egli (200 freestyle, 100 freestyle), Tyler Parker (100 butterfly) Henry Simpson (100 freestyle, 100 backstroke). Egli, Parker, and Simpson also qualified with their respective relay teams, including Andrew Herold and Noah Parker, in the 200 and 400 freestyle relays.
The MSHSL State Boys Swim and Dive Meet begins today at the University of Minnesota Aquatics Center.
MSHSL State Boys Swim and Dive Meet Information
Wrestling
The wrestling team ended its regular season with a 15-8 overall record. The team was seeded #7 in the Section 2AA Team Tournament, which starts this Thursday. West defeated Waseca in the first round before losing to a tough team from Delano.
The Section 2AA Individual Tournament was held this past weekend and wrestlers Charlie Pickell (126 lbs), Josh Block (145 lbs), and Zachary Jakes (285 lbs) will compete in the State Wrestling Tournament this weekend.
Order Your Yearbook Today!
Yearbooks are now on sale! Don’t wait to purchase your copy of the 2017-2018 Mankato West High School yearbook. The deadline for ordering a Yearbook is Friday, March 16th.
To order online, please go to www.mankatowestyearbook.com. If you have already purchased your yearbook, thank you!
Extended Deadline: Senior Grad Ads for the Yearbook
The deadline for submitting grad ads has been extended to Monday, March 12th. Please review the following information. If you have any questions, please email Meredith Mayra at mmayra1@isd77.org.
Grad Ads are optional “ads” for your graduating senior. They are 1/8 of a page and will be placed in the 2018 yearbook. The cost is $25 and you can include a photo(s) and message to your graduating senior. You can design and create your own ad by going to our pictavo community web page OR you can submit your photos/message and money directly to Meredith Mayra for a yearbook staff member to design on your behalf.
Further guidelines for senior portraits and directions for submitting grad ads can be found by visiting our Mankato West Yearbook Website.
ACT Prep Opportunity
Find out more about this program and reserve a spot for your student by opening the document posted below.
Coming Soon: Other Important Dates
- Thursday, March 8th: US Marines Visit @ 10:00am
- Monday, March 12th: PSEO Informational Meeting @ & DEADLINE for Senior Grad Ads
- Wednesday, March 14th: Bethany Lutheran College Visit @ 10:00am
- Friday, March 16th: DEADLINE for Pre-Ordering a Yearbook