Students Undertaking Control of their Character, Effort, Skills and Support

• Middle School Students are at the age now where they can, and should, Undertake increasing levels of Control, or responsibility, for the development of the academic and psycho-social skills they'll need for high school, post-graduate education and life.
• Parents, teachers, coaches, pastors and others deliver messages about Character, but the students themselves are the ones who have to make the decision to be responsible, self-disciplined and caring, to show respect and to be a person of integrity.
• Students also have total control over their Effort, much to the chagrin of the adults in their lives sometimes. No matter how much natural ability a student has, it's effort and work ethic that are going to determine how successful they are.
• Parents, teachers, tutors and others are introducing and reinforcing the importance of all kinds of Skills, but the students themselves are the ones who have control over how hard they are going to work to master those skills.
• Support is provided by the adults in their lives, but this is the time to help students develop an understanding that everyone needs support of one kind or another. The sooner students identify what support they need, where to get the support and then actually take control and get it, the farther they are along the road to success. For a lot of students, just getting to the point of raising their hand and asking for help in class or in the After-School Program is a big step forward on the road to developing a support system.

The SUCCESS in the Middle model

SUCCESS in the Middle is a model, not a program, and the goal of the SUCCESS in the Middle website is to provide a resource and method of communication for volunteers (prospective and current) and schools/sites/agencies. As we learn more about how best to serve middle schoolers, the hope is that we will share that knowledge with one another and thereby improve our service to middle schoolers. In the end, we hope to improve outcomes for middle schoolers, which will improve the outcomes for our communities in the not-too-distant future.

In order to best serve the volunteers and students, the following elements have been put in place in schools and sites using the SUCCESS in the Middle model:

• A volunteer coordinator (paid or volunteer) is on site when volunteers to meet with students. The coordinator meets and greets and supports tutors and mentors and acts as a liaison to the school staff as needed.
• SUCCESS in the Middle volunteers attend an orientation/training specific to supporting with middle schoolers.
• SUCCESS in the Middle schools and sites have materials and resources available on-site that are specific to middle schoolers' needs.