On Wednesday, November 30th, Batesburg-Leesville Middle School was officially redesignated as a School to Watch. The Schools To Watch program, which is a product of The National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform, seeks to recognize diverse, high-performing, growth-oriented middle grades schools in order to demonstrate what all middle grades schools are capable of achieving. BLMS received its original School to Watch designation in January of 2020 and is required to complete the redesignation process every three years in accordance with program guidelines.
“The criteria that is set forth in the Schools to Watch model is rigorous, growth-oriented and earned based on achievement across the domains of academic excellence, developmental responsiveness, social equity and school organization. We could not be more proud of the administrators, faculty, staff and students of Batesburg-Leesville Middle School for this tremendous accomplishment. They are surely exemplifying and modeling our district mission of “Preparing Students for the Future…Now,” said Dr. Ashley Atkinson, Superintendent of Lexington County School District Three.
As part of the redesignation process, Batesburg-Leesville Middle School faculty and staff had to complete an extensive application and participate in on-site visits and interviews by a Schools to Watch team. Students and parents were also involved in the redesignation process.
Currently, there are 31 other middle schools in South Carolina that have achieved the Schools to Watch designation and more than 450 Schools to Watch across the country.