Message from the Principal

  • Dear West Side School Community Members,


    My name is John Barnes, and I am thrilled to serve as the West Side School principal. I have worked for two decades as a school administrator and am thrilled to serve Cold Spring Harbor Schools for my third year at West Side School. My undergraduate degree is from the Hartt School of Music, and I started my career as an elementary music teacher in a PreK-Grade 5 school. I then was a Social Studies enrichment teacher before teaching all core subjects as a fourth grade classroom teacher. I also served as a Standards-Based Model Classroom teacher and staff developer/instructional coach, prior to making the leap into school administration. I love working with students as they transition from early childhood to young adulthood, and believe it is the most important time in the lives of our young scholars. The foundation we build, nurture, and foster sets up the pathways for a lifetime of opportunities, and all the milestone moments we aspire for our children to achieve. Together, the possibilities are limitless and I am grateful to be part of a school family with such a strong and active home to school partnership in place. Thank you never feels like enough when acknowledging the work that is done by our PTG, parent volunteers, and community members.


    I know how fortunate I am to be at West Side, and how high the expectations are from our school and district constituents. We are a school that is committed to honoring the rich history of our beloved school community  while working to remain innovative and ensuring that we create new traditions, and opportunities for students to soar higher, grow stronger and achieve greatness  while in Grades 2-6. One of our annual school traditions is the annual “Ringing of the West Side School Bell” on the first day of the school year. In April, we will be celebrating our 235th birthday and the start of our 235 years in operation! To launch the 2024 -2025 school year we were thrilled to have our new Superintendent of Schools, Mr. Joseph Monastero, as the honorary “first ringer” alongside this year’s elected Student Council Officers and some of our West Side team members. 


    We must prepare our scholars for the rigorous demands of the new and ever-changing world that has evolved considerably over the last few years. With the team of extraordinary people in our school and across our district, I am confident we can exceed even our own expectations to facilitate our students in reaching their maximum potential academically, socially, and emotionally. 


    At West Side School, we start each day with our in person morning assembly, which starts daily at 8:45 am. During this time we say the pledge of allegiance and sing either our West Side School Song or a song from our West Side School Song Book. In addition, we highlight the day in history, community birthdays, and what’s for lunch on our daily lunch menu. We also spend time delving into our schoolwide monthly themes and say our daily motivational morning affirmation. Here are a few specifics for folks to make note of:

     

    MORNING ARRIVAL: The instructional day begins at 8:45 am. We ask family members to plan for a 8:35 - 8:40 drop off to ensure we are ready to begin our Daily Morning Assembly once the bell rings at 8:45 am. In addition, we often have pre-assembly activities taking place to motivate students to be on time and to assist with getting the minds, bodies, and spirits active and ready for a GREAT DAY of school. 

     

    • Buses arrive at approximately 8:35 am. Bus Routes are posted on the parent portal through the bus link.

    • If your child is driven by car to school, drop off is at the Stewart Lane entrance (airplane entrance).

    • Students proceed to the gymnasium for morning assembly.

     

    LATENESS: Students arriving after 8:45 am are considered late.

     

    • Latecomers will need to report to Security for sign in. Let us please avoid any of that and just have our students show up ON TIME and READY for the day ahead.

     

    ABSENCES: Parents must call the school nurse (516.692.7950) before 9:00 am on the day of the absence and send an email to wsattendance@csh.k12.ny.us.

     

    • If a call or email is not received, you will be contacted by school personnel.

    • When it is known in advance that a child will be absent due to extended illness or family business, please notify the child’s teacher and the Health Office as soon as possible.

    • An absent note must be sent to the classroom teacher on the day the child returns to school. The date(s) of absence and reason must be indicated and the note must be signed by the child’s parent or guardian.

    AFTERNOON DISMISSAL: Students will be dismissed as pick-ups and walkers or bus riders.

    ★ Students that are being picked-up will be dismissed from the Airplane Entrance
     ★ Students that are bus riders will be dismissed from the Laurel Hollow Entrance

    PICK-UPS: 

    • Pickups for all grades will be dismissed together at the Airplane Entrance

    • Parents waiting for their children at dismissal must wait in their cars with the ignition turned off.

    • Cars are NOT PERMITTED TO IDLE when in the West Side School traffic circle. We have students in classrooms waiting for us to begin our dismissals and do not want to compromise the health, welfare, and safety of our community members or the general air quality of the building. If you are someone that likes to arrive early, it is imperative that we have a shared understanding of vehicles REMAINING OFF despite the outdoor temperatures. 

    BUS RIDERS: All questions and concerns about bus transportation should be directed to Dawn Hasselman at the District Transportation Office at 631.367.5920 or dhasselman@csh.k12.ny.us

    • While on the bus, all school rules and expectations REMAIN IN PLACE.

    • Electronic devices, phones, smart watches (anything that needs to be charged) are NOT PERMITTED on the bus. 

    • Students who ride the bus are expected to behave in a safe and respectful manner.

    • The driver will report any misconduct to the school administration. 

    • Repeated misconduct may cause the student to lose his/her bus privilege.

    • Bus assistants from the 5th and 6th grade will be selected shortly after the school year begins. They will be present on every bus.

    Dismissal Changes and Last Minute Planning

    The Operoo System is being used to make any Change of Transportation Requests. All changes must be made in the system  by 9:00 am for the day of the requested change. The window of time to make any modifications to the schedule will begin from 3:15 PM the day before, through 9:00 am the day of the desired change.

    Additional requests made after 9:00 am are for emergency situations only, and an email must be sent to wsattendance@csh.k12.ny.us. Please note that the district will be strongly enforcing the rules of the new system. For more information, be sure to read the email blast that was sent out by the district when we first adopted Operoo. 

    Parent View of the Main Screen of Operoo.

    Whenever possible, parents should schedule appointments for their child during non-school hours to avoid interrupting      his/her school day and loss of instructional time. 

     

    If a child is returned to school before the end of the day, he/she should report to the Security Desk and sign back in before re-entering class. 

     

    Some Helpful Links:

     

    CSH Website Link: https://www.csh.k12.ny.us/

     

    West Side School & CSH Website Links: 

     

     

    LUNCHES

    Children should bring lunch or can purchase food in our cafeteria.  Information about ordering meals can be      accessed through our website: Meal Ordering Information. Questions can be directed to Gerri Tiger: gtiger@csh.k12.ny.us  

     

    SCHOOL INFORMATION / AGENDA BOOKS

    During the first week, students will be receiving their Agenda Books.  The front pages of this publication serve as a handbook for families.  Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about the content.  

     

    I am excited for a great school year and can’t wait to see our students on Tuesday morning! I hope you have a wonderful extended weekend and thank you for your continued support and partnership. 

     

    Sincerely,

    John Barnes, Ed.D.

    John Barnes, Ed.D.
    Principal - West Side School