SCHOOL PREVIEW — Athens Middle

Published 5:30 am Friday, August 2, 2019

Editor’s note: The following is ninth in a series of articles previewing the upcoming school year at each public and private school in Athens and Limestone County.

School name: Athens Middle School

Principal: Graham Aderholt

Amount of time as principal: Beginning first full year

Grades: 6–8

Total number of students: About 875

Total number of teachers: 45

Total number of support staff: 25

New programs: “Nothing really new. AVID and Project Lead the Way are probably the biggest here — and co-teaching, which helps us meet the diverse needs of our students.”

What makes Athens Middle special: “A lot. But to really sum it up in 2-3 sentences, I would say we’re a progressive, high-quality learning environment that builds on positive relationships. We love and care for our kids, and we’re willing to try new things to go above and beyond to help our students. We’re a 1:1 environment, so every student has a piece of technology. Our teachers do a great job of being innovative and using tech in their lessons.”

Primary objectives for 2019-2020: “Really just to see growth in our students. … We want to see them improve academically but also see them take the next step forward in building their character and becoming who they are as individuals.”

What the principal is looking forward to: “I just really want to brag on our teachers. They go above and beyond daily, so just to be around that group of educators and see how hard they work every day. Just to be in that setting every day is encouraging. You walk in our building, and it’s just motivating to work as hard as you can for the kids.”