Sarasota Middle School 4826 Ashton Road, Sarasota, FL 34233

"As a student who will be graduating in a few weeks, I can say that I had a fantastic time at this school, however it does have some notable flaws. With the exception of one teacher (who I won't give the name of), every teacher I have had was absolutely amazing, and I have forged some great connections and friendships with them. When my science teacher had to leave last year, I was legitamentally heartbroken over his absence, that's the level of connection I've been able to feel with my teachers here. I've had numerous academic opportunities and experiences that I wouldn't have gotten anywhere else. And the band, OOH the band. I can not think of a more tight knit group of individuals, and a more fun class. Same with the teachers, I have grown a greater connection through individuals at this school, through the many opportunities it provided. There are some flaws with this school, currently at the very least. This year they decided to take about five minutes from each period to create a block of time where we do iReady. Despite what some people say below, no one really "worships" iReady. All I hear from teachers is contempt and anger over it. It is the single greatest waste of my time, a waste of the teachers time, and a waste of money. It is the one notable glaring flaw with this school. The school doesn't expel students randomly and without reason. Said expulsions were over death threats. But the school isn't too sensitive, I was able to wear a shirt of Kirby smoking that dank coosh (weed for the uninitiated), and almost none of the teachers commented on it. The staff is very understanding, if a tad strict at times. It's a very rigid system, which leads to a few annoyances. Once I went to the office for an ice pack, but I didn't have a pass so I had to walk all the way back to class to get one. However none of it is to such a degree where I feel like I'm being treated inhumanly. Condescended to at points, sure, but isn't that all middle schools. In conclusion, send your child to this school if possible. It is an amazing experience, which has prepared me to move onto high school and onward properly. It was rated the best school in 2017 for a reason guys."

"Let me start this with, if I could give it that low of a score, this school would have 0 stars. Old student, from 2012-2013, 6th grade. I have horrible PTSD, depression and generalized anxiety. The experience this school brought did not help in the slightest. The guidance counselor was far from guiding- A direct quote from her to my father, who has military based PTSD is "We are not here to help you." and she tried pushing it off as just 'the depression all teenagers your age go through.' The staff is absolutely horrendous in terms of how they treat students. Peggy Paquette, an English teacher, had an extreme bias towards me as she had known my cousin before myself and used this as an excuse to treat me differently than the other students, humiliated me in front of my peers, leading to a world class breakdown in the middle of class. All because I didn't get signatures from my parents. I don't remember her first name, but a math teacher for 'Remedial Math' rarely spoke like a normal human being. It was always yelling with her; every little thing elicited a shout. As someone who has anxiety due to an abusive father (who I got away from) this did not help at all, and I felt very anxious going to her class, going as far as to constantly skip a good majority of it by telling my social studies teacher I felt ill. Onto the actual campus, it's horrendous. In my time there, there was a lingering scent of urine in the air, or something burning. I had seen on multiple occasions boys pressing closer to the school walls and urinating on them. The most common used excuse by school officials were "This won cleanest school in (a year that is, at this point, obsolete, say 2005)". I felt nervous walking alone, despite there being an on-campus officer. As another review pointed out, there WAS a sexual assault case. I can verify this, because I heard girls in the front office talking to the vice principal about it. I feel horrible for listening, but, this further proves the point that this school is far from safe. When I was there, there were no fights or drugs being distributed, but, I would not put it past this school for it to have fallen to that point. Onto the students, they were horribly rude, and in my time there, I had made three friends. Everyone else tended to ignore me, and if you didn't have pre-existing cliques, there was a good chance you weren't going to make any friends. If you were like me, stuck in remedial classes for the most part, you had a lot of isolation, and rarely met any new kids who were willing to actually try and be friends. The teachers did nothing to help this, and when it came to bullying, which thankfully I kept clear of, they brushed it off as a minor situation, when it was a major one. In conclusion? Don't send your kids to this school. The staff? Horrendously ignorant- Acted like they knew everything simply because they were the teachers & we were the students. I did not feel comfortable asking most of them questions. The students are often treated poorly if they are not gifted. The campus' condition was absolutely horrendous. It was as though the janitors slacked off constantly. I do not suggest this school UNLESS your child is gifted and perfectly stable mentally. This school is not very accommodating for those who drift from the normal line of mental health, and I strongly suggest reconsidering sending your 6th-8th grader(s) elsewhere."

"I have had a great experience there with both my son (finished 6-8) and my daughter (now in 7th). 6th grade was somewhat hard for both socially, but by 7th it all worked out and they loved it. They are both very well prepared. Son went to Pineview, no problem with transition. They were both PGA. My only complaint would be no field trips in a 4 year cumulative. Planned twice for fossil dig in different years but flooding interfered...not their fault! The teachers have been fabulous, including those on electives which are not part of PGA. My daughter loves it and enjoys every moment of the day. They have developed relationships with the teachers, and will cherish them throughout their life....that is a plus to the PGA system, which has a team approach. I think a team approach is a win-win!"

"I think that Sarasota middle school is perfectly fine and they do a great job with everything! People have been complaining of drug use and fights but why blame the school!!!! If the students do anything wrong on school grounds they should be punished the school she have no part in that except punishing the kids and doing what's necessary. DO NOT BLAME THE SCHOOL!"

"I am a Middle School teacher, I bounce around Sarasota County School district working at various schools as a relief teacher. Sarasota Middle School has the least amount of bulling, it has the best grades, a great sports, music and IT program. If I had to say what school is the best in the county for your child I would not hesitate to recommend Sarasota Middle School. Some of the others are good, but really do not compare, the school is like a family, it’s a happy place, this seems to works as the students get higher grades and go onto to better things."