Principal's Message, Mr. Shane Schwarz
Principal's Message, Mr. Shane Schwarz
Sussex Middle School is committed to
working with our partners in the Sussex-Wantage community in order to achieve
our goals. We support and challenge our students so that they have the
opportunity to achieve their personal best academically, emotionally, and
socially in order to help them develop all the skills that they need to lead successful
and productive lives.
Sussex Middle School teaches grades six through eight. Our teachers are highly
qualified in their subject areas and are dedicated to ensuring a positive
learning experience for all of their students. Our staff uses an array of
instructional strategies and methodologies to create a student-centered
environment. These strategies include differentiated instruction, cooperative
learning, integration of technology, authentic assessments/problem-based
learning, and the teaching of research skills. Academic core classes include
language arts, math, social studies, and science. The students’ learning is
rounded out with instruction in music, chorus, art, Spanish, physical
education, and health.
A new initiative this year at the Sussex
Middle School is the implementation of Focus
classes. Situated in the middle of the day, these periods tailor instruction to
student’s individual learning goals. Our aim is to provide each student with
the appropriate focus of instruction to help them reach their full academic
potential. Students, depending on demonstrated needs, were enrolled in one or
two of the following course options: Focus: Basic Skills Instruction, Focus:
Study Skills, and/or Focus: STEM. These classes have been enhanced with the use
of newly purchased chrome books which the students utilize to collaborate on a
myriad of projects. Gaining access to Google apps has provided our students
with an opportunity to explore technology in ways they have never done before.
This year we have also instituted a Reading and Writing Workshop model. This program fosters a love of reading and allows each child to reach his or her full potential. Students are actively engaged in authentic reading and writing experiences on a daily basis, while teachers continuously conference with all students assessing their progress and providing targeted instruction.
Furthermore, specialized instruction
is provided to students with learning disabilities. In-class support, resource
room, and self contained teaching are utilized in order to benefit our
students. Further, students are scheduled with a speech therapist, occupational
therapist, and/or physical therapist, as appropriate.
To facilitate and support these programs, Sussex Middle School provides a guidance
counselor and a Child Study Team, which includes the roles of school
psychologist, social worker, and learning disabilities teacher’s consultant
(LDTC). These professionals consult with students, teachers, and parents in
order to address all needs of our students.
The faculty and staff are committed to the idea of practicing the concept of
life-long learners. To this end, we have incorporated and practice the idea of
this school being a professional learning community (PLC). A PLC is a group of
people that share a common vision and goal. They meet collaboratively in order
to discuss, learn about, and implement strategies to attain that goal. The
middle school staff continues to refine this practice as we move forward.
This year we have also instituted
grade level teams. These teams meet daily and focus on creating formative and
summative assessments, engaging parents, analyzing student data, sharing
innovative teaching techniques, coordinating units of study, maintaining team
websites, and participating in child study team meetings. Grade level teams
give our students a sense of belonging. They understand that a group of
teachers is invested in their academic, social, and emotional growth. This
sense of community results in success for students, both in, and out of the
classroom.
In addition to academics, our students also have the opportunity to participate
in a variety of extra-curricular and co-curricular activities. These include
athletic, scholastic, and community based programs. Athletically the school
offers field hockey, cross country, basketball, cheerleading, track, intramural
bowling, and intramural volleyball. The scholastic and community based programs
include National Junior Honor Society, Student Council, Spring Musical, and
Builder’s Club. In addition, some of our partners in the community also come
into our school and offer tremendous learning experiences for our students.
Our PTO is extremely active and
committed to being a partner in working with our school to benefit students.
They are critical in the area of fund raising to supplement the total
instructional program of the students. They organize an extremely successful
Book Fair annually to sponsor the purchasing of classroom supplies, assemblies,
and instructional materials.
The Sussex Middle School’s
administration is committed to opening and improving opportunities for the
students and staff of the school to meet success. Our school continues to
follow its mission and vision of providing an academically, physically, socially,
and emotionally safe environment for students to learn. We continue to look at
creative ways of offering specific, targeted staff development and scheduling
classes and teachers to enhance student learning opportunities. We ensure that
all of our teachers’ lesson planning is in line with district curricula and
that the curricula are in line with New Jersey Core Curriculum Content
Standards and/or the Common Core Curricula.
The administration, along with our guidance counselor, investigates every report
of bullying. Appropriate measures, both proactive and reactive, are implemented
to try to eliminate all present and future incidents of bullying behavior.
Another one of our community partners, New Jersey Child Assault Prevention,
provides our students with a program that also aims at reducing the incidences
of bullying.
We believe that through our diverse array of staff development, developmentally
appropriate learning experiences, instructional strategies, and commitment to
the safety of our students, we are providing the tools that our students need
to be successful in the 21st century.
Shane Schwarz
Sussex, NJ 07461
Phone: (973) 875-4138