Lanier Earns National Distinction

Lanier Middle School Earns National Distinction as a School to Watch
Posted on 02/08/2021
This is the image for the news article titled Lanier Middle School Earns National Distinction as a School to WatchThe National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform and the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals as part of a national recognition program have designated R. O’Hara Lanier Middle School in Freeport, TX and Brazosport ISD as a Texas School to Watch (STW)!

State leaders selected Lanier Middle School for its Academic Excellence, Developmental Responsiveness, Social Equity and Organizational Structure and Processes. In addition, Lanier MS has strong leadership, teachers who work together to improve curriculum and instruction, and a commitment to assessment and accountability to bring about continuous improvement. Billy Pringle, State Director for Schools to Watch in Texas and TASSP Associate Executive Director for Middle-Level Services, stated, “We congratulate Principal Bridgette Percle and her staff, students and parents for being a campus that does great things for all of their students. This school has demonstrated that a high-performing middle school is a place that focuses on academic growth and achievement. Lanier MS is a place that recognizes the importance of meeting the needs of all students and ensures that every child has access to a challenging high-quality education.”

“We are extremely proud that R. O’Hara Lanier Middle School has been selected for this recognition. We strive to foster an environment where all students develop social and academic success,” Principal Bridgette Percle stated. “Our dedicated faculty and staff continues to be committed to ensuring high levels of learning for all of the amazing students at Lanier.”

Lanier joins approximately 50 other campuses across the state of Texas with this distinction and honor. They will be recognized at the Virtual Making Middle School Matter Symposium hosted by TASSP on March 1-2, 2021. They will be recognized nationally with all of the other recognized STW schools across the country at the Virtual National Forum Schools to Watch Conference in June of 2021.

The Schools to Watch selection process is based on a written application that requires schools to show how they met criteria developed by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform. Schools that appeared to meet the criteria were then visited by state teams, which observed classrooms, interviewed administrators, teachers, students 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, they must demonstrate progress on specific goals in order to be re-designated. Unlike the Blue-Ribbon recognition program, “Schools to Watch” requires schools to not just identify strengths, but to also focus on areas of continuous improvement; thus, the three-year re-designation.

“This recognition is another example of the effort, determination and high expectations set by our students and staff,” said Superintendent Danny Massey. “Great things continue to happen at Lanier Middle School and across this great district!”

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 researched based criteria developed by the National Forum. The Forum developed a web site https://www.middlegradesforum.org that features online tours of schools, as well as detailed information about selection criteria used in the recognition program. There are now 17 states across the country, which have trained Schools to Watch State Teams, with more than 480 schools recognized across the country.

Lanier School to Watch
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