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Mountain Shadows Middle School History

The main buildings in which Mountain Shadows Middle School resides were built in 1964 by the Petaluma Joint High School District for the Rohnert Park Junior/Senior High School. Rancho Cotate High School was built in 1969 to house 9th –12th graders and turned the Rohnert Park Junior/Senior High School into the Rohnert Park Junior High School, RPJHS, for 7th and 8th graders. In 1978, the Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District, CRPUSD, was created.

 

In 1994, CRPUSD began building a new middle school, Creekside Middle School, on the north side of Rohnert Park which opened in the fall of 1995. Both Creekside and Rohnert Park Junior High School were to begin serving sixth through eighth grade students in the 1995-96 school year. In response to becoming a middle school, Rohnert Park Junior High School staff restructured itself in preparation to meet the needs of their new student population. During this process, they renamed Rohnert Park Junior High School to Mountain Shadows Middle School, MSMS. The Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District, which has over 6,100 students, 6 elementary schools, 2 middle schools, one alternative middle school, one comprehensive high school, one alternative high school, one small necessary high school, and one Technology High school. The district has declining enrollment from 1999 to the present, due to increasing high costs of living in the area, and lack of new housing in the community. The community is located 45 miles north of San Francisco. It is a commute community for businesses in the Highway 101 corridor. Sonoma State University is located nearby. 

 

This year, MSMS has 730 students in grades sixth through eighth. In addition to our regular and two special day classrooms, MSMS has a Title 1 coordinator, two resource teachers, an English Language Development Specialist with two RSP instructional assistants and three English Language Learner instructional assistants. MSMS is a targeted Title 1 school, with almost 50% of our population qualifying for free and reduced meals. Nineteen percent (19%) of MSMS’ population is English Language Learners with the majority of these students being Latino.

 

We have created smaller groupings of students called small learning communities or SLCs. There are two SLCs each in 7th (Explorers and Seekers)and two in 8th grade (DaVinci and Triumph), 6th grade level SLC, our Special Day Class SLC (Adventurers), and our specialized middle school program—Expeditionary Learning. Each SLC has its own name and identity all which provides students a place to belong and makes the middle school experience more personalized. In the 7th and 8th grade SLCs, there are 120 students with four core teachers. This helps students and parents create a strong connection with the teachers. MSMS teachers are extremely caring and knowledgeable and are willing to help you and your child to have a successful time at MSMS.

 

The MSMS staff is committed to providing a safe and supportive environment that promotes student learning and achievement. We offer reading and math intervention support during the school day. We have two READ 180 classrooms and a full lab as well as a mini-lab for our iPASS math program.  These programs extend student learning during the intervention support classes that are in addition to the students’ regular English and Math classes. Students in our intervention support classes have shown strong academic progress. In addition to our intervention support classes, the District provides MSMS with four leveled English Language Development classes along with three sheltered English classes.

 

MSMS staff has undertaken the challenged to implement school–wide the following instructional strategies:

·         Thinking Maps, Organizing Student Thinking, ( a graphic organizer approach to learning)

·         Active Student Engagement

·         Academic Vocabulary

·         Teaching behavior expectations using the B.E.S.T. model of Be Safe, Be Responsible and Be Respectful

 

In addition to the school-wide instructional strategies, MSMS has implemented the MSMS Honor Program. This program is part of our BEST program and recognizes students for a variety of accomplishments. Every quarter we have a minimum day complete with grade level assemblies, student activities, and community service. Each quarter, over 72% of the student body is recognized and given a certificate and can chose to receive a badge specific to the award. Students can purchase a stole to sew the badges on and wear on special occasions such as Honor Days and Promotion.

 

Our students benefit from our award-winning Write to the Point monthly assessment and our annual MSMS Writing Contest. In math, students can exhibit confidence and expertise by participating in Math Counts and other math Competitions. We have a strong elective program and offer intermediate and advanced Band, Technology Education (Shop), Home Arts (Cooking and sewing), Art and Computers. In addition, our sixth grade team takes students on a variety of field trips to introduce the students to the world around them. In the Spring, we have our Outdoor Education Week where most students attend Outdoor Ed at Alliance Redwoods while other students take advantage of the weeklong Rainforest Adventure. We believe in helping the “whole child” grow and achieve both academically and personally.




Phone Numbers

Phone: 707-792-4800 | Fax: 707-792-4516