2023 East Avenue Middle School Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District Alameda County Jesse Hansen, Principal Enrollment: 547. Grade Levels: 6-8. School Characteristics and Replicable Practices PLCs: Common essential standards, assessments, rubrics, and reteaching Engage students through clubs, intramurals, and social events Wellness center and tiered social and emotional support Students plan recognitions for contributions of diverse students Data analysis identifies areas of need and the impact of interventions

2023 Palm Desert Charter Middle School Desert Sands Unified School District Riverside County Deborah Dolan, Principal Enrollment: 1,350. Grade Levels: 6-8. School Characteristics and Replicable Practices Tier 1 supports include guidance lessons and SEL integration in all courses Parent engagement through Latino literacy and counselor coffee programs Strong electives including one CTE pathway Novel study-based humanities program Incoming family induction process facilitates a smooth transition

2019 National Schools To Watch Conference Featuring Rick Wormeli, Gerry Brooks, and William Martinez June 26-29, 2019 View conference photos

2023 William Mendenhall Middle School Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District Alameda County Tammy Rankin, Principal Enrollment: 882. Grade Levels: 6-8. School Characteristics and Replicable Practices Strong shared leadership between administrators and instructional leadership team High expectations to meet the needs of all students PBIS program guides students daily Counselor creates weekly SEL videos taught by teachers Inclusive student leadership activities where all students participate

2025 National Schools To Watch Conference Featuring Rochelle Wilson, Jonathan Alsheimer, and Dr. Martinrex Kedziora June 26-28, 2025 IT WAS SO GREAT TO SEE YOU! Thanks for joining the National Forum and your fellow Schools to Watch in D.C.! Photobooth Pictures (Passcode: 06262025) See all your Whova photos

Ran Barnes Middle Grades Practitioner Ran Barnes has served for over fifteen years as a Board member for the North Carolina Association for Middle-Level Education. While on that Board, he has served as the Central Office Representative, Treasurer, and Past- President. In addition, Ran serves on the Board for the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform. While serving on these Boards, Ran worked with the 2010 Investing in Innovation i3 grant for NC. This was a three-state collaboration with North Carolina, Illinois, and California. He is currently the state director for the SEED grant. This is a 4 state initiative with Michigan, California, North Carolina and Illinois. Ran is active in the Schools to Watch (STW) initiative in North Carolina. Each year he visits schools to help determine a school as a new STW or a redesignated STW. < Back

2023 Alta Loma Junior High School Alta Loma School District San Bernardino Andrew Carter, Principal Enrollment: 641. Grade Levels: 7-8. School Characteristics and Replicable Practices Rotating schedule means students experience each class at different times of day Administrators greet students from open gates until school bell rings for rapport building PBIS tickets from staff to students can be used to earn items Students can request administrator appointments in-person or online Teachers alternate between assembly duty/team planning meetings during assemblies

New Jersey Arizona | Arkansas | California | Colorado | Florida | Georgia | Illinois | Indiana | Kentucky | Michigan | Missouri New Jersey | New York | North Carolina | Ohio | Oregon | Pennsylvania | South Carolina | Texas | Utah | Virginia State Director Rick Delmonaco rdelmonaco@clarkschools.org Aimee Toth toth@mendhamboroschools.org Participating Organizations New Jersey Association of Middle Level Education NJ Schools to Watch 1977 North Olden Avenue, Suite 245 Trenton, NJ 08618 Email address: njschoolstowatch@njamle.org Website: njschoolstowatch.org Twitter: @njstw1 Joined National STW Program 2007 Schools to Watch Application 2027 Application Instructions New Jersey Schools to Watch Belhaven Middle School (2011, 2023) Black River Middle School (2010, 2014, 2017, 2020, 2023) Byram Middle School (2018, 2023) Carl H. Kumpf Middle School (2014, 2017, 2020, 2024) Dwight D Eisenhower Middle School (2016, 2019, 2022, 2024) Eisenhower Middle School (2022) Franklin Avenue Middle School (2024) George Washington Middle School (2020, 2024) Leonia Middle School (2014) Macopin Middle School (2025) Mountain View Middle School (2008, 2011, 2014, 2017, 2022) Pleasant Valley School (2017) Randolph Middle School (2019, 2023) Richard Butler Middle School (2024) Richard Teitelman Middle School (2022) Ridgedale Middle School (2025) Thomas A. Edison Middle School (2020) William Annin Middle School (2016, 2019, 2024) School Profiles Coming Soon

2014-2015 Vilonia Middle School 2014 - 2015 School Statistics School Characteristics and Replicable Practices -

Martinrex Kedziora Past President Originally, from Memphis, TN, Dr. Martinrex Kedziora has been a middle school teacher, special education coordinator, K-8 Principal and Professional Development Director during his 30-year career. He serves as Chairman of the California League of Educators. As an Education Faculty member for National and Brandman Universities. He serves as a team member of CLE for the California Department of Education and the Middle Schools Alliance. He is a committee member of the Urban Education Committee for ACSA. He is the Chair of the Advocacy Committee for the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades, Vice President of the Moreno Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and on the advisory board for the Schools First Federal Credit Union. < Back

2023 Bernice Harrell Chipman Junior High Bakersfield City School District Kern County Tomás Prieto, Principal Enrollment: 727. Grade Levels: 7-8. School Characteristics and Replicable Practices Daily advisory for academics and SEL MTSS Tier I/Tier II provide school-wide and individual student supports Reading intervention model addresses foundational literacy gaps GPA credit recovery includes recovery coursework, tutoring, mentoring Culture of literacy with school-wide and individual student goals

2017-2018 McNair Middle School 2017-2018 SCHOOL STATISTICS Designated in 2009 Re-Designated in 2012, 2015, 2018 Community Size - Suburban School Enrollment - 730 Grade Levels - 5, 6 School Calendar - Traditional Free and Reduced Lunch 22% English Learners 4% Students With Disabilities 13% Demographics Hispanic 5.4% White 80.1% African American 3.7% Asian 4.1% Native American 0.3% Pacific Islander 0.8% Filipino 0% Two or More 5.6% Other 0% School Characteristics and Replicable Practices Academic Excellence Teachers assess ongoing data to progress monitor and utilize the tools from NWEA MAP testing to differentiate the instruction in order to create personal learning goals for all. School wide processes, including daily advisory, attendance/discipline, pod team meetings, and content PLC meetings, continuously identify students who are struggling academically and provide support structures for RTI A and B interventions. To enrich students’ academic excellence and meet the diverse needs of our learners, McNair Middle School is focused on creating quality formative assessments. • Each student conferences one-to-one with their advisory teacher to create SMART goals that address areas of focus within the Reading, Language, and Math learning strands from MAP testing. From these conversations, students share their academic goals with their families creating a culture of community focused on academics between home and school. McNair is implementing a more blended approach to learning as teachers integrate Google Classroom, one-to-one technology, and other technology tools and applications. McNair has continued supporting the differentiation of learning and closing the achievement gaps by giving access to research-based interventions that support the data such as Empowering Writers, Barton, Alphabetic Phonics, ELD and Corrective Reading. To help all our students reach their full academic potential, McNair continues to focus on implementing rigorous lesson planning, relevant research-based, data-driven instruction, and building relationships with each of our Mustangs. Teachers continue to utilize data in their instruction to focus on specific learning targets/goals for each student. Developmental Responsiveness Advisory is a dedicated class period that focuses on academic planning, team building, service learning, and character education. Advisory continues to assist students with goal-setting and smaller learning communities in order to support the whole child. McNair implements an Impact Team, which is a systematic approach to support a student who may not receive support outside of the school. The Impact Team pairs teachers and staff with students. The goal of the Impact Team relationship is to ensure every student’s academic and personal development is guided by an adult advocate. The Impact Team may eat lunch together, check grades, recognize their hobbies, or introduce new goals. Teachers and staff are continuing to explore current research in order to understand early adolescence. McNair provides targeted professional development to teachers each year on the specific academic, social, emotional, and developmental needs of early adolescents. Students are given an opportunity to have ownership and choice in their learning. Students feel respected when topics, and how to approach the learning of that topic, can be explored in many different ways. Core and encore classes allow students the opportunity to showcase their learning in a variety of learning modes and find ways to collaborate with their peers in order to better understand the given topic. Teachers are comfortable being the facilitator while letting students lead the discussion. McNair implemented student-involved conferences that provide a hybrid approach to parentteacher conferences. Students and families meet with the teacher to discuss academic and social progress. Then the student and family meet together to review his/her Google Sites student portfolio. Using Google Sites as our mode for student portfolios creates a realistic and relevant method of communication and branding. Student portfolios currently consist of a personal mission statement, grades and attendance, a personal learning plan (data sheet and goal setting), and artifacts from each content area. Together as a family they answer reflection questions of celebrations and growth areas. Flexible Seating is utilized throughout the building to meet students’ developmental needs. Students have opportunity to explore a variety of personal interests such as Fly Fishing, Archery, Odyssey of the Mind, Theatre, and many more. This gives students a sense of belonging while building relationships with teachers outside of the classroom. Creating lifelong leaders along with lifelong learners is a high priority at McNair. We create a variety of leadership roles. These leadership roles consist of Ambassadors, Principal’s Cabinet, Fire Marshals, Student Council, Pod Council and Students of the Week who lead pod meetings. To maximize our student leadership, we ensure that there is no overlap of students for each leadership role. Through our relationship with community partners, students participate in a variety of studentlearning project through advisory, leadership roles, and after-school clubs. Service Learning is a designated time when students can focus on their passion and develop soft skills while enhancing and enriching the lives of others Community connections may include guest speakers, informing students of methods to get involved in the community, and/or partnering with a community group. Social Equity Families are provided access to comprehensive services to meet their physical, social, and emotional needs. McNair has established a PBIS/RTI Committee of teacher leaders. The PBIS/RTI meets once a month to discuss building-wide initiatives and academic/learning progressions. The PBIS/RTI committee then meets with their respective team members and leads the monthly team RTI and Praise and Polish meetings. Our staff maximizes the master schedule by having ongoing interventionist available throughout the day in order to help support the child’s academics and behavior needs. With the addition of MAP data, teachers are now able to progress monitor and create specific learning goals. Our Structured Learning Classroom (SLC) is mainstreamed for encores, advisory, and runs our Green Team. Families are supported with ongoing community resources providing access to school functions, transportation, and meals. When families attend McNair, they feel the connection of community within the school. Organizational Support McNair advisory is built on the foundation of four pillars: team building, character education, academic planning, and service learning. Our R.U.N. motto has been ingrained into our culture at McNair. ‘R’ stands for Respect, ‘U’ stands for Understand We Own Our Behavior, and ‘N’ stands for Never Quit. Our PBIS Behavior Matrix system establishes student behavior expectations. By using researchbased strategies, the PBIS increases positive interactions. The PBIS leadership team meets monthly in order to answer building questions and review on a regular basis about the student success. McNair has a school-wide instructional leadership teams focusing on promoting the middle school philosophy, effective instructional practices, and educational initiatives. The purpose of the ILT team is to work collaboratively to develop and implement school wide improvement goals in order achieve the vision and mission of McNair Middle School. A multi-tiered RTI program is in place to support all students in academics and behavior. Professional Learning Communities are established by grade-level content teams. McNair has implemented one-to-one technology. Teachers have collaborated and researched best practices to ensure effective technology implementation and integration into their lesson plans. McNair has started MakerSpaces in the library. MakerSpace allows students to become creators of information (not just consumers), build critical thinking and problem solving skills, participate in selfdirected learning, foster a culture of creativity and collaboration, and allow for inquiry and exploration.