Click Here for a list of Michigan Schools to Watch
For more information, please contact:
Steve Hoelscher, State Coordinator of Schools to Watch
Po Box 95
Battle Creek Mi. 49016
248-249-3265
hoelschersteve@yahoo.com
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First
Annual Schools to Watch Conference---Celebrating Excellence in Middle Level
Education
WHEN: Wednesday, May 7, 2008 8:15 AM - 2:45
PM
Eastern Time Zone
WHERE: Bovee University Center
103 East Preston St.
Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859
USA
FEE: Individual Registrant Michigan Schools
to Watch Conference $125.00
View Event Details and Registration
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 12, 2008
OUTSTANDING MICHIGAN MIDDLE SCHOOLS
NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED
Two Middle School Identified by the
National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform as Top Middle Schools
Champagne-Urbana, IL – Two exemplary Michigan middle-grades schools have been
identified as “Schools to Watch” as part of a recognition program developed by
the National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform. The following schools are
part of a group of 47 schools across the country receiving this distinction:
•
Belding Middle School—Belding
• Ludington
Magnet School—Detroit
Each school was selected by state leaders for its academic excellence, its
responsiveness to the needs and interests of young adolescents, and its
commitment to helping all students achieve at high levels. In addition, each
school has strong leadership, teachers who work together to improve curriculum
and instruction, and a commitment to assessment and accountability to bring
about continuous improvement.
Dr. John Harrison, Chair of the National Forum’s Schools to Watch Committee
stated, “These schools demonstrate that high-performing middle grades schools
have a clear focus on academic growth and achievement. They also recognize the
importance of meeting the needs of all of their students and ensuring that each
and every child has access to a rigorous, high-quality education. We are proud
to have these schools serve as models from which others can learn.”
Selection is based on a written application that required schools to show how
they met criteria developed by the Forum. Schools that appeared to meet the
criteria were then visited by state teams who observed classrooms, interviewed
administrators, teachers, and parents, and looked at achievement data,
suspension rates, quality of lessons, and student work. Schools are recognized
for a three-year period, and at the end of three years must repeat the process
in order to be re-designated. Twelve of the 47 schools recognized have
maintained or increased their levels of excellence and are being re-designated.
The schools vary in size from several hundred to several thousand students and
represent urban, suburban, and rural communities.
"We are pleased that our Schools to Watch program has shown that schools can
meet high academic expectations while preserving a commitment to healthy
development and equity for all students," said Dr. Deborah Kasak, Forum
executive director. "These Schools to Watch are indeed special; they make
education so exciting that students and teachers don't want to miss a day. These
schools have proven that it is possible to overcome barriers to achieving
excellence, and any middle-level school in any state can truly learn from their
examples," Kasak said.
Launched in 1999, Schools to Watch began as a national program to identify
middle-grades schools across the country that were meeting or exceeding 37
criteria developed by the Forum. The Forum web site (http://www.schoolstowatch.org)
features online tours of schools, as well as detailed information about the
selection criteria used in the recognition program.
In 2002, the Forum began working with states to replicate the Schools to Watch
program as a way to introduce the Forum's criteria for high-performance and
identify middle grades schools that meet or exceed that criteria. Different
education organizations have taken the lead in each state, but all have received
training and support from the Forum to implement their Schools to Watch
programs. The lead state organizations are the Arkansas Association of Middle
Level Education, the California League of Middle Schools, the Colorado
Association of Middle Level Education, the Georgia Middle School Association,
the Association of Illinois Middle Schools, the Kentucky Center for Middle
School Academic Achievement, the Michigan Association of Secondary School
Principals, New Jersey Consortium for Middle Schools and New Jersey Department
of Education, the New York State Middle School Association & New York State
Department of Education, the North Carolina Middle School Association, the Ohio
Department of Education, the Oregon Middle Level Association, the Pennsylvania
Middle School Association, the South Carolina Middle School Association, the
Utah Middle Level Association, and the Virginia Middle School Association. All
are planning in-state recognition ceremonies. Sixteen states are currently
involved in the program and the addition of these schools raises the total
number of Schools to Watch to 164 nationwide.
The National Forum sponsors the Schools to Watch state program with the support
of its members and the State Schools to Watch programs. Schools convene at the
Schools to Watch Conference in the Washington, DC area June 19-21, 2008.
The National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform is an alliance of 65
educators, researchers, national associations, and officers of professional
organizations and foundations dedicated to improving education in the middle
grades.
In 2005,
Michigan adopted the program. To visit the schools selected, see below. To
view detailed information about the selection criteria, visit (www.michiganstw.org).
MICHIGAN
