The faculty and staff of Gilbert Middle School help all students develop the World-Class Skills of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate by being committed to developing our students’ knowledge and skills. We strive to prepare our students to use the characteristics of integrity, self-direction, perseverance and effective interpersonal skills as they become active citizens in our global community. This is accomplished through the utilization of district-approved curriculum, continuous professional learning on best practices in instructional strategies, the integration of technology as a learning tool and personalized support for struggling learners, as well as extension for accelerated learners.
Our students, parents, teachers, administrators and support staff have faced a challenging year. We are proud of the resilience our students and staff have demonstrated. As a faculty and staff, we were excited to welcome our students back in the building following the March 2020 closure. It was fantastic to once again have teaching and learning taking place within our walls. We were also happy to offer virtual learning as an option for students. We appreciate the support our parents have provided for their students and our faculty.
This year we worked closely with EL Education as we explored the implications of becoming a network school. Together with our school designer, the leadership team created a work plan that not only guided our professional learning but ensured a plan was in place to support the social and emotional needs of our students, faculty and staff. We are grateful for the commitment of our counseling office to provide support and services to all members of the GMS family.
To best meet the needs of our students, GMS implements a variety of strategies designed to provide the support necessary for learning to occur. For qualifying students in English language arts and/or math, GMS provides Response to Intervention services. All students, regardless of ability level, have access to multiple digital resources. Adaptive programs and resources enable teachers to provide students with more personalized support based on individual needs. Star 360 assessment data provide teachers with students’ current levels of performance in the areas of math and English language arts.
GMS students are provided opportunities to study and gain knowledge in other areas including STEM, iCivics, Family Consumer Science, visual and performing arts, and physical education. Our students are excelling in their studies of world languages. As a core subject, world language classes meet each day for the entire year. Entering sixth grade students choose the language, Spanish, French, German or Latin, they will study during their middle school year. We are very proud of the achievement of our students in world languages.
In addition to opportunities in academics, GMS strives to develop the whole child by providing outstanding programs in the arts and athletics. We are proud of the consistent superior ratings our fine arts students receive at state and regional performances. Our athletic teams also perform at high levels, consistently earning winning records.
We are proud of our students and their accomplishments. We want to thank our parents and community for their support as we continue our efforts to improve the achievement of our students in the classroom, on the performance stage and athletic fields.
Benji Ricard, Ed.D., Principal
Allison Powell, SIC Chair
