For immediate release
April 20, 2017
Three Middle Schools Tapped as Schools
to Watch;
11
Middle Schools Earn Re-Designation
Ellerbe Middle
and Rockingham Middle (Richmond County Schools), and Newton-Conover STEM Middle
(Newton-Conover City Schools) are the latest North Carolina middle schools to
be named Schools to Watch by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle
Grades Reform. The schools’ emphasis on strong academics, sensitivity to young
adolescents’ needs and interests, and commitment to providing all students
equal access to a high-quality education resulted in the well-deserved
recognition.
Schools are recognized for a three-year period, at the end of
which they must apply for re-designation and demonstrate that they are
continuing to meet the National Forum’s rigorous criteria. The following 11
North Carolina middle schools were re-designated as Schools to Watch:
- Charles W. Stanford
Middle (Orange County Schools) and Mount Airy Middle (Mount Airy City Schools)
earned their first re-designation.
- McGee’s Crossroads
Middle (Johnston County Schools), Piedmont Open IB Middle
(Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools), and Chowan Middle (Edenton-Chowan Public
Schools) – first designated six years ago – were re-designated for the second
time.
- Rogers-Herr Middle
(Durham Public Schools), West Pine Middle (Moore County Schools), and Thomas
Jefferson Middle (Winston-Salem/Forsyth Schools) – first recognized nine years
ago —were re-designated for the third time.
- Carmel Middle and
Jay M. Robinson Middle (Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools) and East Yancey Middle
(Yancey County Schools) – first recognized 12 years ago – were re-designated
for the fourth time.
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction Chief Academic
and Digital Learning Officer Maria Pitre-Martin congratulated the schools’
principals, teachers and students. “These principals, teachers and staff
demonstrate that strong leadership and academic expectations, combined with an
approach geared to the instructional and emotional needs of middle grades
students, paves the way to success,” she said.
North Carolina currently has 33 middle schools designated as Schools
to Watch. To be selected as a
Schools to Watch, schools need to be:
-
Academically Excellent. Is the curriculum rigorous and relevant to the real world?
-
Developmentally Responsive. Do
students have a safe, healthy and personalized learning environment that is
responsive to the unique needs and interests of young adolescents?
-
Socially Equitable. Do all students have access
to high-quality classes and the support they need to achieve at high levels?
-
Organized with Supportive Structure. Is
there shared leadership, collaborative learning communities, targeted
professional development and effective organizational structures?
These schools are available for
interested educators to visit and learn about the application and see
first-hand what made them a Schools to Watch. They also will be
showcased as models throughout the state and the nation to promote their
approaches to instruction, parent and community involvement, and professional
development. The schools were recently recognized at the North Carolina Middle
School Conference in Greensboro and will be recognized this summer in
Washington, DC at the National Schools to Watch Conference.
In 2002, North Carolina became one of the first states selected
by the National Forum to replicate the Schools to Watch program as a way
to identify high-performing middle grades schools to serve as models of
excellence for other schools. Currently, 17 states are involved in this school
reform and recognition initiative. Different education organizations have taken
the lead in each state. In North Carolina, the North Carolina Middle School
Association in collaboration with the North Carolina Department of Public
Instruction provides leadership to the state's efforts.
The National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform is an
alliance of over 75 educators, researchers, national associations and officers
of professional organizations and foundations dedicated to improving education
in the middle grades.
For more information about the state's Schools to Watch program, please contact NC Middle School
Association Executive Director Dr. Cathy Tomon or
252.241.1586.
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