At Forest Creek Middle School, we develop the World Class Skills of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate by remaining grounded in our founding principles: fostering growth, committing to excellence, building meaningful connections, and succeeding together. Our fourth year was defined by the theme Pursuing Greatness, a message that reflected the passion behind our daily efforts and the foundational beliefs that guide our culture.

We believe positive relationships fuel success, instructional excellence must be central every day, and that everyone is capable of learning when given the right opportunities alongside high expectations. Prioritizing a safe environment where all students and staff feel supported academically, socially, emotionally, and physically is essential. By providing access to a challenging curriculum and ongoing professional growth, our Coyotes are equipped to meet tomorrow’s challenges with confidence. Collaboration and valuing every voice unite us on this shared journey.

These beliefs shape our pursuit of meaningful goals and guide our approach to student achievement, teacher development, and school climate—each reflected in the three core focus areas of our School Improvement Plan.

First, we focus on elevating student achievement by providing rigorous, engaging instruction and personalized support. Next, we prioritize teacher development through targeted professional learning and collaboration to ensure instructional excellence. Finally, we cultivate a positive, safe school climate where all students and staff feel valued and supported. Together, these focus areas reflect our unwavering pursuit of greatness at Forest Creek Middle School.

Student Achievement, Including Sub-groups (Our targeted subgroup was our male readers.)

Compared to the state, our ELA performance data for Spring 2024 was 23% points higher for meets or exceeds expectations. Our Math data was 27.1% higher. With this in mind, we examined our ELA data further and identified a gap in reading performance between our male and female students and continue to move forward with that as our school priority area until the end of our current School Improvement Plan cycle. According to our Spring 2024 SC Ready ELA Reading Assessment data for our students in grades 6-8, the number of female students who performed at the meets or exceeds level was 80.1% compared to 76.5% of our male students. Performance Goal Area 2 for the 2024-2025 school year is to decrease this gap by 1.6% with the goal of a 1% or less achievement gap between our male and female students in their reading performance. Strategies included implementing school-wide tier 2 intervention system (BOOST) to address literacy and reading gaps, incorporate greater student choice in reading materials, and hosting a male author to share with our students the importance of motivation, a positive attitude, and courage to learn as much as you can and do as much as you can despite any obstacles that get in the way.

Teaching/Administrator Quality

Compared to our state as well as our district, our rating (7.95/10) is greater than that of the state (7.53) and district (7.65). After examining the items in the Spring 2024 SCDE Teacher Climate Survey, we found that 98.2% of our teachers were satisfied with the working conditions at FCMS. Performance Goal Area 1 for the 2024-2025 is to increase teacher satisfaction related to working conditions to 98.5% with the long-term goal of 100% satisfaction being reported. Strategies included creating opportunities for increased classroom visits and observations with feedback, providing tier 1 professional development to assist with classroom management and instructional strategies, reducing the number of weekdays required for lunch duty, providing free breakfast for our staff on Wednesdays, and outlining specific Coyote Way systems for accountability and clarity.

School Climate

Results of the SCDE Teacher, Parent, and Student Survey indicate 98.2% of our teachers are satisfied with the social and physical environment at FCMS, along with 92.6% of parents, and 93.3% of students. Performance Goal area 3 for 2024-2025 school year includes increasing this satisfaction rate as follows: teachers from 98.2% to 99% / parents from 93.3% to 95%. Strategies included: celebrating all students by the end of year in our Spring Pep Rally/Assembly, utilizing a three-year data recognition spreadsheet to identify students who have not been recognized, sending Happy mail and emails home to students and teachers, implementing the Coyote Jack Pot for positive student behavior, providing rotating enrichment groups (BOOST) for students and staff to be able to make greater connections with more students across campus. This year, we celebrated a staff member each week on social media via our Coyote Spotlight and celebrated birthdays for all students and staff via our morning announcements. Additional highlights from our Pursue Greatness Tour include:

• Contributed to Hurricane Helene relief efforts.

• Celebrated the Mock Trial team, crowned State Champions.

• Showcased school spirit as the cheer team painted Coyote Pride Paws across campus.

• Achieved a conference championship with the 8th grade volleyball team.

• Raised over $3,500 for the Special Olympics of SC through Polar Plunge efforts.

• Honored inclusion by participating in World Down Syndrome Day.

• Recognized students for positive behavior through quarterly Coyote Jackpot celebrations in partnership with Coyote Central.

• Inducted over 35 students into the Junior Beta Club.

• Honored 42 Junior Scholars during our Junior Scholars Award Night.

• Earned SUPERIOR ratings once again as the Band excelled at CPA.

• Launched solution-focused teacher committees to strengthen school-wide systems.

• Promoted literacy and a love of reading through Battle of the Books, Read-In @ the Greenway, School Library Month, and faculty book clubs.

• Celebrated over 500 honor roll students each quarter.

• Showcased 36 new Words of Wisdom posters, featuring quotes submitted by students, families, and staff.

Go ‘Yotes!

Christine McNeil, Principal