Camden Middle School is helping all students develop world class skills and the life career characteristics of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate by developing confident, responsible, and competent learners. Our dedication to our motto of “SOARing to Excellence” is demonstrated in the implementation of best practices and continuous professional development.
We are proud of the accomplishments and growth we have experienced this year. Academically, we saw positive growth based on our MAP scores and their correlation to student performance on SC Ready. We celebrated our students' efforts and growth on MAP and other academic achievements consistently throughout the year.
The CMS Library and our literacy initiatives as a school were a source of pride. We accomplished our goal of logging the most reading minutes of any middle schools across the district Beanstack reading log program. Students participated in reading celebrations during the school year, and this culminated with wonderful participation and recognitions at our end of the year awards ceremonies. Students in our book club created a book banner which won second place in the state and joined the display of banners from previous years in the library. Additionally, the entire student body participated in a schoolwide novel study of City Spies by James Ponti. Each student received a copy of the book to keep for their own personal library. Students completed interdisciplinary activities in each of their core classes as well as a culminating event on the effects of pollution on habitats with our community partner, Clemson Extension Service.
In regards to our school community, we also saw positive gains in every category of our parent surveys which will be reflected on our school report card. These gains were due in part to the family engagement opportunities we offered —parent universities, family literacy night, 8th grade parent night, and other opportunities throughout the year.
Our Beta Club finished second in the state in service hours, and ultimately was nationally recognized with MVP (what does this stand for) status by the national Beta Club organization. Our student council worked diligently to serve our school community, and raised thousands of dollars to support students in need and other school-specific needs.
In athletics, our girls and boys basketball teams won the region championships,and we had winning seasons in volleyball, football and wrestling as well.
In the arts, we are proud of the achievements we saw this past year. Our chorus program was recognized with the highest rating possible - “Superior”- at the state competition. Our band program continues to grow and improve as well. In different arts competitions, to include our district art competition and the Heritage Tea Project, we saw multiple students place first or in the top 3.
We are thankful for the support provided to our school and students, and realize that any success at Camden Middle School is the result of a team effort between parents, students, staff, and our community.