West Side Montessori graduates are sought after by area parochial, private, and public schools and have distinguished themselves in high school, college, and beyond.
WSM Alumni have held numerous leadership positions such as class president; student body president; sports, debate or drama team captain; and school ambassador.
The school counts among its alumni numerous high school valedictorians, team captains, student government officers and leaders of all kinds. They are resilient and creative, a result of growing and learning in an environment that encourages children to take appropriate risks and learn from their mistakes.
West Side's graduates seek challenges, are confident speaking and performing in public, and show uncommon resilience in pursuing their goals. They frequently cite that their appreciation for differences in various cultures and viewpoints was nurtured during their Montessori experience with its commitment to peace.
West Side graduates are known for being leaders when they move on to high school and Layan Ridi (‘22) and Daivik Patel (‘21) are no exception. Both attend Maumee Valley Country Day School where Layan is a freshman and Daivik is a sophomore.
Congratulations to West Side alum Max Shelton (‘19) on being named Valedictorian of his graduating class at Central Catholic! Max had direct involvement with every aspect of high school life and completely embodies West Side’s “Portrait of a Graduate.”
We want to wish WSM alum John Heckert (‘18) the best of luck as he heads to Dallas, Texas, next week to compete in a national event sponsored by the Business Professionals of America.
The current war in Ukraine inspired WSM alum Allison Sachs (‘20), now a sophomore at Notre Dame Academy, to take action. Allison describes herself as “an avid news reader and a blooming activist” and stated that she “wanted to make a difference and guide others in my community through these dark times.”
Sam Thomas (’19), now a sophomore at Maumee Valley Country Day School, has expanded on his talent for creating clay sculptures with stop motion animation.
Christian Reichle ('05) and his mother, Monica Pritchard, have been collecting public responses for an art installation that will be featured in the Grand Rapids, Michigan 2021 ArtPrize competition.
Talk about one Compassionate Leader! West Side alum Jack Gensler ('18) is making a very important contribution to this year's electoral process—recruiting young, healthy poll workers!
Samantha (Laramie) Reynolds began learning the French language as a young WSM student and is off to teach English and increase her French fluency in Beauvais, France until next May.
Former West Side student Adrienne (Sack) Gallagher was thrilled and honored to receive a Sports Emmy in the Outstanding Short Feature Category. Her winning piece was a 12-minute video, detailing the life of former Southern Methodist University men’s golf coach Jason Enloe as he dealt with losing his wife to cancer and his team’s subsequent run toward an NCAA Division I National Championship.
This past spring, WSM alum Shohan Shetty (‘12) graduated with College Honors from Washington University with a major in Neuroscience and a minor in Anthropology.
Recognized in both the vocal jazz performance and scholarship worlds, Ellie Martin is a highly respected vocalist, educator, and Jazz studies scholar. She is currently the vocal jazz instructor and vocal jazz ensemble director at the University of Toledo, and Toledo School for the Arts. In addition to her teaching, Ellie continues to perform nationally as well as internationally.
How do our West Side students do when they transition to high school? This is a question many parents ask when considering committing to a Montessori education through 8th grade.
"The Montessori focus on independent learning taught me problem-solving skills and confidence when completing projects, which I have utilized in school, internships, and now in my career."
West Side Montessori is an independent, accredited Montessori school educating children 13 months through 8th grade (preschool, kindergarten, elementary school and middle school). We are one of the leading private schools in Toledo, and the nation.