Where to find answers about middle school choices
By NewsLine Staff
Bartram Springs Elementary (14799 Bartram Springs Pkwy.) is holding a Middle School Information Night on Thursday, Jan. 7 starting at 6:30 p.m. for area students and parents. If your student is nearly finished with elementary school and you are weighing your options … Â for middle and high school, this event will help answer your questions.
Perhaps you are contemplating a move out of the district to a neighboring county or a private school. Maybe a charter school? What options do you have?
Did you know that the 29th ranked high school in the entire nation is Stanton College Preparatory School and it is located in Duval County? Furthermore, it is a public school. In fact Duval County Public Schools has two magnet high schools ranked in the top 15 public schools in Florida according to U.S. News and World Report; neither St. Johns nor Clay counties have schools ranked in the top 20.
Duval County Public Schools actually has 62 different schools across its magnet program that are accessible to students throughout the county. Each program focuses on a theme and gives students an opportunity to explore an interest or talent. There is a school out there for each unique student’s interests.
There is no national ranking system for middle schools, but there are a lot of great options among the middle school that feed these top rated high schools and you can learn about them at the Middle School Information Night.
The format consists of brief presentations by Jacksonville Education Fund and the DCPS School Choice Office to help families understand their choices, how the process works and available tools, followed by a presentation by Twin Lakes Academy Middle School. The bulk of the night is then dedicated to an informal meet and greet.
Students, parents and administrators from the most popular middle school choices will be available to share about their first hand experiences, curriculum and extracurricular programs and answer any questions you may have in an expo setting. You can walk to the booths of interest to you and spend as much time as you would like.
The following middle schools will be represented at the event: Lavilla Middle School of the Arts (Visual and Performing Arts), Darnell-Cookman Middle/High School of the Medical Arts (College Preparatory), Kirby-Smith Middle School (Math, Science and Technology), Julia Landon Middle School (Gifted and Academically Talented, Leadership), Twin Lakes Academy Middle (Curriculum for all ability levels, Gifted Programing, High School and Pre-College Courses, Full Range of Extracurricular Activities) and James Weldon Johnson Middle School (Gifted and Academically Talented, Advanced Studies).
