Friday Harbor Middle School

This is an outstanding school with an amazing staff who supports an even more incredible Principal. Unfortunately the local school board and new superintendent feel our principal is not a good fit. I don't know what they want because he is above and beyond any administrator I have ever seen. Despite literally hundreds of parents & community members support as well as the entire school staff, our beloved Principal is leaving. His absence will be felt for a long time to come, leaving many in this community not trusting the current board or superintendent.

Communication is inadequate, and planning is often left to the last minute. While the community exists, it lacks engagement. Progress is slow, with an old-school mentality holding things back. Growth requires forward momentum. The director, whose approach to listening is outdated, needs to step aside for more innovative leadership. The dormitory program has been in development, on and off, for nearly 15 years with minimal progress. There are hardly any activities for the dorm students, which inevitably leads to problems. Overall, this school needs fresh perspectives and stronger programming to thrive.

Stillpoint has been an amazing school for my daughter. She hated school and dreaded every morning until I transferred her to Stillpoint. What a huge difference the teachers and program have made in her life!!! The learning experience for her has been incredible. Learning French is part of the ritual as it is woven into the day and I love how she is now attempting to teach French to me. (i speak Spanish- not an easy conversion!) Stillpoint school uses brain-friendly practices. Along with their challenging and personalized academic program, they model and teach effective problem solving skills, have a strong academic program focus on cultural literacy, mathematics, language arts, science, the arts, and cultural diversity. Their curriculum is taught with the newest research-based methods in education and the school emphasizes small class sizes with one-on-one interaction to ensure that every student reaches his or her full potential as a learner and as a valuable member of our community.