CA's Model Middle Schools

From the state Dept. of Education, November 27, 2011: State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced four high-performing middle schools have been added to the list of "model middle schools." Formal name of the program is Schools to Watch -- Taking Center Stage (STW-TCS). Eleven previously designated "model middle schools" are retaining their status under the same program.(STW™−TCS) program. Another 11 high-performing California schools will also retain their model middle grades schools status under the same program.

The four newly designated schools are:

1. Granite Ridge Intermediate (Clovis Unified School District, Fresno, Fresno County) is the fifth middle grades school in the district to receive the STW™−TCS designation. Clovis Unified is the first district in the state to have all its middle grades schools receive this designation. The school's achievement gap has narrowed 37 points on the state's standardized tests under Principal Norm Anderson's leadership since it opened in 2008. Anderson was also recently named Fresno County's Administrator of the Year.
2. High Desert School (Acton-Agua Unified School District, Acton, Los Angeles County) is a small rural school. Administrators have worked very hard to turn their school around and close the achievement gap. Hispanic students' scores on the state's standardized tests have climbed 88 points in the past two years, while socioeconomically disadvantaged students have gained 81 points since 2007.
3. Katherine L. Albiani Middle School (Elk Grove Unified School District, Elk Grove, Sacramento County) is the second middle school in the district to receive the STW™—TCS designation. The achievement gap of students has narrowed by more than 30 points on the state's standardized tests since 2007.
4. Olive Peirce Middle School (Ramona City Unified School District, Ramona, San Diego County) is a rural school. Students continue to make gains in all subgroups on the state's standardized tests. The school has gained 53 points since 2007, while socioeconomically disadvantaged students have gained 71 points.

The redesignated model middle schools are:

1. Castaic Middle School (Castaic Union School District, Castaic, Los Angeles County);
2. Culver City Middle School (Culver City Unified School District, Culver City, Los Angeles County);
3. Clark Intermediate (Clovis Unified School District, Clovis, Fresno County);
4. Dartmouth Middle School (Union Elementary School District, San Jose, Santa Clara County);
5. Gaspar de Portola (San Diego Unified School District, San Diego, San Diego County);
6. McKinleyville Middle School (McKinleyville Union School District, McKinleyville, Humboldt County);
7. R.H. Dana Middle School (Wiseburn School District, Hawthorne, Los Angeles County);
8. Silverado Middle School (Dry Creek Joint Elementary School District, Roseville, Sacramento and Placer counties);
9. Tincher Preparatory (Long Beach Unified School District, Long Beach, Los Angeles County);
10. Toby Johnson Middle School (Elk Grove Unified School District, Elk Grove, Sacramento County); and
11. Torch Middle School (Bassett Unified School District, City of Industry, Los Angeles County).

In order to be named a STW™—TCS model middle school, school administrators must conduct a self-study evaluation and complete an extensive narrative application. Each site is then reviewed by a team of middle grades experts. In order to retain the designation, each school is re-evaluated every three years.