Coastal Middle School is once again recognized as a National Lighthouse School to Watch! The designation is in effect for the years 2019 to 2022. Coastal Middle has been in the program for six years and has to go through a re-designation process every three years.
The Schools to Watch® initiative was launched by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform in 1999. Through the Schools to Watch® initiative, the National Forum identifies schools across the United States that are well on their way to meeting the Forum's criteria for high performance. Forum members believe that three things are true of high-performing middle-grades schools:
- They are academically excellent — these schools challenge all students to use their minds well.
- They are developmentally responsive — these schools are sensitive to the unique developmental challenges of early adolescence.
- They are socially equitable — these schools are democratic and fair, providing every student with high-quality teachers, resources, and supports.
To achieve this level of performance, high-performing schools establish norms, structures, and organizational arrangements to support and sustain their trajectory toward excellence. They have a sense of purpose that drives every facet of practice and decision-making.
Observers who visited Coastal Middle during the most recent re-designation process stated in their report that they were extremely impressed with the continued progress of the school in all areas of criteria and that all staff members should be commended for their continued persistence at raising the bar at the school.
Coastal Middle School will be recognized at the Georgia Association of Educational Leaders conference in Athens on January 28th, as well as at the annual National Forum Schools to Watch conference in Washington, D.C. in June.
The STEM Academy at Bartlett became the district's second school to be designated as a Lighthouse School to Watch in 2018
