Our school is helping all students develop the World Class Skills of the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate by providing a rigorous, 1:1 technology based middle school STEM curriculum where students are able to communicate, collaborate, think critically, and be creative in problem-solving based activities that address real-world issues.
When Bluffton Middle School opened its doors in 2010, we set a precedent of supporting our students and families socially, emotionally and academically. We serve a diverse population of nearly 900 6th-8th grade students. Our student population is comprised of 44% Hispanic/Latino, 38% Caucasian, 13% African-American, and 5% Other. To compliment and further develop our core academic program, we offer several Project Lead the Way (PLTW) courses that provide students the foundational knowledge for STEM learning needed in high school and to be college and career ready. Through PLTW, our students engage in hands-on, collaborative, real-world learning opportunities. This curriculum includes: Design and Modeling, Automation and Robotics, Medical Detectives, Flight and Space, and Green Architecture. Due to our heavy focus on STEM learning building wide, we received the prestigious STEM certification through Cognia and were recertified this year. This award recognizes the extraordinary opportunities our students have to interact with technology to research, collaborate, and think critically to problem solve real world situations incorporating all subjects.
To support our students social/emotional needs, not only are we are a PBIS school, but we also implement the Responsive Classroom Advisory structure. This framework promotes the trust and emotional safety necessary for students to take risks to grow academically. During this sacred twenty minutes in the morning, students engage with their teachers and peers with a warm and welcoming arrival, important announcements from their teachers, practice their public speaking during daily acknowledgements and get their minds and bodies prepared for learning with an energizing activity.
Additionally, we offer a variety of clubs and extracurricular activities that support our students’ interests and investment in their school. Our athletic teams have been highly successful on the fields and courts, as well as in the classroom maintaining above a collective 3.5 GPA. Our orchestra and bands compete annually at the local and state level bringing home ratings of Excellent and Superior. In addition to our athletic and arts programs, our Green Steps, Youth in Government/Model UN, Culinary Cooking, Boys Volleyball, Yearbook, MustangTV, Art, Student Council, FCA, NJHS, Junior Beta, and Robotics clubs are wildly popular.
The success of our students is directly related to the investment made by our incredible staff, parents and community partners who support us in our classrooms with their knowledge, time and resources through our PTO, SIC and general contributions. We will maintain these wonderful traditions we know are at the core in fundamentally developing our students into high quality citizens who are the future leaders of our community.
Matthew D. Hall- Principal
Kim Williams- SIC Chair
