Mustang Mania brings families together at Claymont Middle School

A mix of an open house, dinner, and a carnival atmosphere provided much family fun at Claymont Middle School in Uhrichsville when Mustang Mania returned for 2025.

"Last year was a huge success. Our goal is always to have it a family night,” Alisha Mahaffey, an ELA teacher at CMS. “We want middle schoolers to be here with their family members, and we felt that was important, especially at this age.”

The smiles on the student’s faces spoke volumes. Alex Kail, a CMS student who said teaching might be a career choice for him, enjoyed everything about the event.

"I like all the games and face painting and the different stations,” Alex Kail said. "All my friends are here. It's really nice; and fun. There's a lot of prizes and activities to do here that I really love."

The event had future students excited about attending CMS. Alessa Dickey, 10, who is Alex Kail’s sister, also attended the event. She enjoyed the face painting and the food the most, emphasizing that the food was the best part of the event.

The best compliment on the event was yet to come.

“This is the most fun I've ever really seen my brother have with me, other than the fair,” Alessa Dickey said.

With the exception of a few drink vendors outside the school and a Mustang apparel vendor, everything at the event was free including a dinner, served in the cafeteria, of food donated by local businesses.

"The event bridges that gap between home and school,” Mahaffey said adding that children don’t always want to talk about what they are doing at school when they get home. “Here they can show them.”

Lined up in the gym bleachers were all the students’ Leader in Me program binders. The students work on their binders each week as a part of the program.

“Every kid in the middle school has one. They learn life skills, like how to set goals and how to communicate with people and things that go beyond the classroom,” Mahaffey said.

The binders also include a "brag section" for positive office referrals. Staff can nominate students for going above and beyond. Students collect these referrals, have them signed at home, and then receive a prize from the office.

CMS student Kendall Meese, 13, liked seeing everyone happy at the event and that she was able to show her father, Ben Meese, her Leader in Me binder. 

“It shows all my hard work that I’ve done in my Leadership class,” Kendall Meese said. “It’s a a period where you get to talk about your thoughts and put your own creations into one thing.”

Her younger sister enjoyed seeing the work too but had another favorite activity.

“I like spending time with my dad and my sister,” Khyler Meese said.

Due to the popularity of Bumblebee the Transformer last year, Bumblebee again attended the event. His appearance was sponsored by Ember Complete Care.

"Bumblebee was huge hit last year, so we knew we wanted to bring that back,” Mahaffey said. “Our clubs did a little something different this year, they did the flag pendants. The kids got to design those, and they are hanging by our prize table, and we're excited because we're going to hang those in the building afterwards.”

Other popular activities included balloon twisting, face painting, and a craft project. Each area of study had a table on the bottom floor of the school to talk about their programs. They also had activities and quizzes for the students to win treats.

The CMS student council did much of the behind the scenes work to prepare for the event.

"Our student council was a huge help preparing for the night. They helped create posters. They helped a lot with stuff that I can't do by myself,” Mahaffey said.

Mahaffey thanked the community for their support including the businesses who donated and the community partners which included non-profit organizations.

“We have a lot more community partners than we ever have this year, including some new ones,” Mahaffey said. “I think it’s important for families to know that there’s so many resources available to them.” 

Mahaffey was pleased that the event provided another successful opportunity for the parents, students and staff to build positive relationships and celebrate the school community.