Graham Park Middle School
3613 Graham Park Rd.
Triangle, VA 22172
Phone: 703.221.2118
Principal: Gary J. Anderson
Assistant Principals: John DeMarkis and Judith Marie Mears
Date Opened: 1963
Number of Students: 725
Number of teachers: 52 Total Staff: 72
School Colors: Blue and White
School Mascot: Lions
Graham Park Middle School is located in the oldest continuously chartered town in Virginia. The town and school are situated on 60 acres of land at the head of the harbor of Quantico Creek, which was owned by John Graham. John Graham named the town after his birthplace in Dumfrieshire, Scotland. Graham Park is situated on land which was once part of the Graham plantation.
Graham Park serves Brittany, Dumfries, Montclair, Triangle, and Quantico.
Graham Park is in its 7 th year as a Math/Science Specialty School. Students enrolled in the program are given opportunities to explore in depth mathematical and scientific concepts and principles in an intensive program of study. Besides a challenging curriculum, students have the opportunity to further develop their critical thinking skills. All students in the program are required to complete a science fair project in the spring.
Approximately 250 students in grades six through eight are currently enrolled in the program.
The Park has it all: The site-based SIGNET (gifted education) Program gives students an opportunity to participate in class and independent center activities for a total of 50 hours a year. The SIGNET resource room has over fifty independent centers designed to meet the individual abilities and interests of its students. Those with a proclivity toward science experiment with magnets, electricity and prisms; artistic students gravitate to the computer art, piano, computer music and satire and art centers; others who enjoy writing participate in the Writing On center while some explore the past and learn about the culture and history of Ancient Egypt. All centers are self-paced.
Class activities give students an opportunity to work in small groups on large projects, such as building a working model of a trebuchet. The ESOL Center at Graham Park provides services for students from 24 different countries who speak 17 different native languages. The students’ class schedules are determined by their mastery of the English language. Approximately 100 students are enrolled, at any given time, in either Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced or Monitor levels. A key component of this program is our commitment to family literacy. We participate in the Prince William County Parents as Educational Partners (PEP) intervention program. This program offers instruction to ESOL parents/ guardians in communicating with the school, filling out job applications, and other related skills in addition to English language lessons.
Standards of Learning classes are offered to those students who need extra assistance in helping them to master academic areas to successfully pass the standardized tests. These classes are offered after school.
Our Accelerated Learning Lab (ALL) offers individually designed programs to assist students in achieving to the best of their ability. This is a computer-generated curriculum for math and reading. Students work at their own pace on timed programs focusing on specific math and reading skills.
The Park (as Graham Park is affectionately known) offers an eclectic array of activities from student government, Math Counts, drama, ecology, foreign language, step team, and a host of other traditional clubs to sports teams such as soccer, football, track, basketball and baseball/softball to satisfy the needs of the most discriminating student. Our Catch a Star Program , implemented by our music department , is designed to encourage students and families to attend arts events in and out of school.
Students are encouraged to keep a log of any and all community-based touring musical performances or theatrical productions, fiction or poetry reading by visiting authors, as well as visits local art galleries and museums . Students receive a bronze certificate for 5 events, a silver certificate for 10 events and a gold certificate for 20 events.
The Guidance Department’s CHAMPS (Conflict Happens and Mediation Prevails) program has proven an invaluable tool for nine years. This program has been successful in reducing serious student conflicts of a verbal nature to prevent escalation. When disagreement begins to surface, student mediators and a trained staff member sit down with the students and work out a mutually acceptable agreement to all parties involved.
Computer Labs are available for student use after school Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students may complete class assignments, homework or complete research projects. All students who are bus riders must sign up for the activity bus in their homerooms.
Parents/guardians are a crucial component of our Teaching, Learning, Caring philosophy emphasizes positive and good working relationships. Parents/guardians are encouraged to become a vital part of the school community by taking a few minutes each day to review the Student Agenda, volunteering to serve on various committees and activities sponsored by the Parent Student Teacher Organization (PTSO), serving on the Principal’s Advisory Council (PAC) or simply by encouraging their student(s) to complete class and homework assignments and to become involved in extracurricular activities.
Graham Park has been a fully accredited Virginia middle school since the program’s inception. Graham Park Middle is currently the only middle school that has forged a partnership with Prince William Forest Park. In the Rangers Against Drugs (RAD) program, students gain a better appreciation of themselves, their school and their community, as well as learning ways to resist becoming victims of substance abuse. Through the program, interested students are encouraged to become stewards of our National Parks.
Graham Park’s staff is committed to making our school a community of learners in a bully and harassment free environment. We have implemented an exciting new program: R.O.A.R. (Respect, Order, Attitude, Responsibility. This is a Positive School-wide Discipline Program, in conjunction with the Virginia Department of Education. Incentives such as drawings for prizes (like bicycles and TVs) for kids with no referrals, positive ROAR postcards home, teacher incentives, and a student mentor program to build an upbeat, positive learning environment. The Park provides its students with the mechanisms and skills needed to master the critical challenges and demands of the 21st century in a committed and caring environment.
Updated 8/20/08
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