Research Plaza Middle School public Schools in Virginia Beach, Virginia

“I am truly disapointed with Plaza. I am a parent of a rising 8th grader and the past two years at Plaza have been the worst of my sons school career. As a former student of Plaza myself I can say the school has not changed since I attended there in the 80's. There is severe issues with supervision and disipline. I have a gifted disabled child and there is no program in place to meet his needs. The pricipal Ms. Warren is the worst I have ever seen. She does not know what goes on in her school. I have since pulled my child from the school and is currently home schooled. Plaze needs to take a hard look and their school and try to make changes before any of my other children will attend.”

“My two children attend the Middle Years Program at Plaza and we have been very happy with the program. The approach to learning is varied and creative. The teachers are involved and caring and responsive. My kids work hard but haven't found the work load overwhelming or too difficult. The school is clean and run well. I would highly recommend this program. We chose to send our children here instead of to private school because we feel it is equally as good academically and better rounded socially.”

“I have two children in the MYP at Plaza Middle and have been thrilled with the program, the school, the teachers, and the administrators. Our children work hard but they love school and are learning quality material. They still have time to participate in activities and they are very busy. The teachers are extremely responsive and get back to me immediately about any concerns. My daughter comments about how fast the days go by and they both love school. The teachers know my students personally and know their strengths and weaknesses and are willing to work with them to develop their own learning style.”

“I am a parent of two Daughters in the Middle Years Program, one in 6th grade and one in 7th grade. The MYP is excellent. The children are encouraged to hold themselves to a higher standard of behavior, academic achievement and social involvement. The degree of knowledge the staff has about my children, including teachers, receptionists and administrators, amazes me. If I thought my children in were in danger I would put them in private school. My children have become better students and better members of their community. I appluad the MYP program at Plaza Middle.”

“I am the parent of a 6th grade MYP student . The MYP teachers and advisors have been great with communication and very helpful and the IB program is very sound. However, the stress my child has experienced as a result of transitioning into middle school and dealing with bullying has not been so wonderful. The student combination is a bad mix. Safety is an issue. My child will be switching schools.”

“I am an 8th grader at plaza middle school, and i must say myself it does have good points and bad points. Some of the good things are that there are some really good teachers and the music/sports/arts is really great.There are some very bright students at plaza.people say that some teachers don't discipline, well i am a gifted student there and since there is no advanced social studies, I have to be stuck with some bad kids every other day and there are some very bad students at plaza.Bullying,fights,and threats are a big problem. But aside from that there are some nice teachers with fun activities and good teaching tactics.I give the school a 3 out of 5”

“I Have mi daugther in IBM program is the best. Mi daugter love it.”

“As the parent of a 6th grader I am at the point of being disgusted with Plaza Middle School. I have had no luck in getting the majority of my phone calls to teachers returned. My son loved school before Plaza and now hates it. The bullying is out of control. We are now turning to private school for his education. Thankfully my son will be somewhere else, but I fear for the other children who have no choice but to return. Plaza is in serious need of help.”

“I am a parent of a sixth grader and I have been extremely disappointed in the way Plaza handles the transition from elementary to Middle school. They preach 'responsibility' and 'accountability' for the students but they don't teach it to them. Their lack of guidance in this area has greatly altered my child's perception of school. My child has gone from loving school to hating it in less than a year. I think that they spend too much time focusing on the 'bad' kids and not enough time focusing on the kids who want to learn.”

“the teachers and administrators can be over zealous. In balance there are certainly teachers that lack any kind of activity when the need arises to discipline. As a parent I have also found it to be extremely hard to get a teacher to return phone calls. The communication is difficult at best. I am not a parent that feels the need to call teachers weekly or even monthly, so when I do actually have an issue, I expect a response. I have not had one occasion that did not require me to contact the office and ask for an administrator to help get a teacher to return a call. Over all I am rather disappointed in this school.”

“Plaza Middle School runs a pretty tight ship, which is normally a good thing. However, sometimes this leads to teachers overreacting to kids 'being kids' with indiscriminate threats of referrals, detentions, etc. Parents need to be highly involved in giving feedback to teachers and the administration when such overcorrections arise. Plaza has been very responsive -- especially the counselors -- in addressing occasional overzealous threats of discipline. Both the administration and most of the teachers appear to care about much more than SOL scores; but parents need to be involved!”

“PMS may be an old school but has highly educated teachers and one of the best Guidance and Administration. It was also voted the cleanest middle school in Virginia Beach. I recommend this school no matter any circumstances.”

“I went to PMS only five years ago and I must say that the school is not the worst, but it was a very good school. I really enjoyed their musical program as far as chorus and band and things go, and it was a pretty good school.”

“My Child is enrolled in the IB Middle Years Program at Plaza. This coming year will be her third year attending this school. It has been a wonderful experience for my child and for us as parents. This school cares about their students. As far as I have seen security takes care of any problems that may arise. I have not seen any problems with weapons at this school. Plaza has offered a great teaching atmosphere for my child. The teachers have been available everytime my child has needed help. They make the time for the students at Plaza through email, afterschool, during lunch, and on the phone. The MYP Coordinator Mrs. Winn is awesome. The extracurricular sports are wonderful too. Kudos to Mrs. Warren, Mrs. Winn, and all of the teachers and staff at Plaza. Keep up the wonderful job.”

“My child goes to Plaza for the IB program and before we start fearing for our childrens life with other children bring weapons to school lets teach them ourselves what to look out for because it can happen anywhere! I think it is a great school I have had no problems and don't intend to. We have to work together meaning the school and the home. For further info find the poem Two Sculpters. Being involved doesn't end at 5th grade, even if you can't always be involved with activities at school.”

“Unfortunately, I cannot give rave reviews. There is a significant security/safety issue with Plaza Middle School. The locker rooms, outside of portables as well as the cafeteria are three of the most dangerous places for my son. The principal herself when chating has admitted that knives are a problem at Plaza this school year. I am frighted that one day I will receive a call saying my son is either severly injured or dead. Parents, stay informed and best of luck to your child!”

“The Plaza Middle School is the world to my 12 yr old daughter. She loves the enviroment and thinks that the teachers their are very caring and show concern. Me as a parent has never seen so much respect and concern for children in this school. I am happy I moved her to have my daughter as a student in this school. You keep the good work up your #1 in our book. You will be missed Mr.Walker. You have a outstanding personality.”