Sarasota Middle School

I was a student that went to the school and I ABSOLUTELY HATED IT. I got bullied every day and I told the teachers and they did nothing about it. I will never go there ever again.

We also moved to a specific neighborhood so that my son could attend SMS - word out was this is the best school. When our son attended school in Connecticut, he had several friends, was never threatened by anyone and was treated with respect by teachers. From almost the first week of school at SMS, my son was chastised by his history teacher who was big into public humiliation and shaming students. She also ignored my FOUR attempts at contacting her until I had to go to the school and speak to the Vice Principal. For some reason, she also thought it was OK to pull my son out of his science class so that she could write a note to me in his assignment book. There was also some bullying behavior from the band teacher, who then said he was leaving the school but then changed his mind. Band was his favorite class until the Vice Principal pulled my son out because of situation. The one teacher my son was doing well with ended up out on maternity leave at the Christmas break. After my son was beat up afterschool and it was video taped and posted on Facebook, I was told by Vp that there was nothing they could do and I was on my own. I pulled my son out that week. What a disaster it was.
--Submitted by a parent

Most teachers are very helpful in making sure students are prepared. The school staff is helpful, school is the cleanest I have ever seen and I love the fact that the school is really safe. Great job of preparing students improve their reading skills that have a direct improvement on kids obtaining success on the FCAT.
--Submitted by a parent

Both of my children have gone to SMS and we believe it is the best middle school in Sarasota. We relocated here and chose our house because it was in this school district. Excellent administrative staff. The principal is very fair and runs with school with determination and common sense. The PTO is huge (especially for a middle school) and provides great financial support and several activities for the students. The gifted programs score as high (and most of the time, higher) than the all-gifted school, Pine View. But the other teams are also well run and provide another reliable choice if you would rather have your child in a straight-grade environment. After 6 years with this school, I give it my highest recommendation.
--Submitted by a parent

Yes it is most excellent. I love it here and always will. I have made lots of friends and everybody just excepts everybody. Although the math grades here are horrible and there is a clique but I dont care and neither does anyone else.
--Submitted by a student

GREAT gifted program ... interested teachers, interesting students ... very supportive environment
--Submitted by a parent

It was far more interesting back on the old campus down from Sarasota High School. When I taught there, teachers were allowed to teach with their own creativity. For the past twenty years schools have been teaching out of a box.
--Submitted by a teacher

sarasota middle is truly one of the best in sarasota. great teachers. great programs.
--Submitted by a parent

Sarasota Middle School seems to have an adequate academic program and the teachers seems to be able to inspire motivation for school projects. However, there is some concern about discipline in regards to a recent discovery of drug activity on the campus. To prevent a recurence, students have been advised that there will be NO lockers or bookbags (unless they are transparent) in the coming year, which leads me to wonder how students will manage to carry a heavy load of books from class to class. On one occasion I felt it necessary to contact the school regarding an event that involved a student who appeared to be ill in the lunch room. My student, and others reported that some of the teachers behaved inappropriately. I spoke with the secretary to the Principle. The result was not reported to me. I felt I should have had feedback.
--Submitted by a parent

Our son was in 6th grade this year. Sarasota Middle appears to be an excellent school for normal kids but our son is learning disabled. For the past two years, he had attended a private school that specialized in such children and by the end of that time he was getting straight A's. Despite this history, the school did not even evaluate him for ESE without considerable pressure from us. They then used 2 1/2 year old testing that did not include an IQ test and decided he was not learning disabled. As a result, his grades have fallen to C's and D's and we will have to put him in a private school again. Since he is not considered disabled, he does not qualify for a MacKay scholarship.
--Submitted by a parent