Don Estridge High Tech Middle School
Encyclopedia
Don Estridge High Tech Middle School is a technology-infused public middle school
in Boca Raton, Florida
that opened in 2004. Integrating technology into all aspects of education, using SMARTBoards (in some classrooms) , Classroom Performance Systems
(often abbreviated as CPS), mobile laptop labs, and in-ceiling sound systems in every classroom, the school is able to infuse technology into every subject.
's main complex (now T-REX Corporate Center). After IBM abandoned most of their operations in Palm Beach County, it was left vacant until being gutted into the academic building of the new school. Other buildings on the school's campus were built new, including a cafeteria, gymnasium, and other small utility buildings. Also on the school's campus is the Safe Schools Institute, a branch of The School District of Palm Beach County that is used for district training and can be rented out as a conference center. The Safe Schools Institute works with the school and on testing student management strategies such as CHAMPS, which is used as part of the "Single School Culture" program at Don Estridge.
. The other buildings on the school campus, which were constructed specifically for the school, are designed to incorporate elements of the modern architecture of the original IBM buildings. These buildings were designed by the West Palm Beach
division of BRPH Architects, and built by Boynton Beach
-based Catalfumo Construction and Development, Inc.
to every classroom by the Broadcast Communications class. A video known as "The Dedication Video" was produced by the same class and shown at the event to promote some of the technology that used at the school. A central event at the dedication ceremony was the presentation of Don Estridge's own original IBM PC
, which was previously in the possession of his family. Plans to showcase the PC in the school office are currently underway.
.
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
in Boca Raton, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
that opened in 2004. Integrating technology into all aspects of education, using SMARTBoards (in some classrooms) , Classroom Performance Systems
Classroom Performance Systems
Classroom Response Systems is a technological way to assess students, more commonly known as Audience Response Systems. Unpublished research results by the author in the early 1990s measured the difference between known interactivity in the traditional classroom and that of a...
(often abbreviated as CPS), mobile laptop labs, and in-ceiling sound systems in every classroom, the school is able to infuse technology into every subject.
Core Classes
- Language Arts
- Math
- Science
- Social Studies (World Cultures, Civics, and US History)
High School Credit Core Classes
- Algebra I: Regular and Honors
- Geometry: Honors
- Integrated Science I: Honors
High School Credit Elective Classes
- Computer Programming I (C++)
- Computing for College and Careers (formerly Business Systems and Technology)
- Spanish I
- Culinary Arts
Electives
- Band (Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band, Jazz BandJazz bandA jazz band is a musical ensemble that plays jazz music. Jazz bands usually consist of a rhythm section and a horn section, in the early days often trumpet, trombone, and clarinet with rhythm section of piano, banjo, bass or tuba, and drums.-Eras:SwingDuring the swing era in the mid-twentieth...
, and Beginner Band. Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band are both advanced classes, a student must be enrolled in either one to participate in the Jazz Band unless they play keyboard or guitar.) - Beginning Spanish
- Broadcast Communications
- Computer Hardware
- Computer Programming (PascalPascal (programming language)Pascal is an influential imperative and procedural programming language, designed in 1968/9 and published in 1970 by Niklaus Wirth as a small and efficient language intended to encourage good programming practices using structured programming and data structuring.A derivative known as Object Pascal...
& C++C++C++ is a statically typed, free-form, multi-paradigm, compiled, general-purpose programming language. It is regarded as an intermediate-level language, as it comprises a combination of both high-level and low-level language features. It was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup starting in 1979 at Bell...
) - Culinary Arts
- Drama/Musical Theatre
- Exploring Technology (Required one semester elective for 6th graders)
- Foundations of Technology (Required one semester elective for 6th graders)
- Intensive classes
- Music Theory and Keyboarding
- Physical Education
- Spanish 1
- Teen Challenges (Home Economics)
- Visual Art
Sports
- Baseball
- Basketball (boys and girls teams)
- Cheerleading
- Flag FootballFlag footballFlag football is a version of Canadian football or American football that is popular worldwide. The basic rules of the game are similar to those of the mainstream game , but instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier to end...
- Soccer (boys and girls teams)/Intermurals
- Softball
- Swim Team
- Tennis
- Volleyball (boys and girls teams)/Intermurals
- Track (boys and girls teams yet they practice together and have same season)
Other
- Academic GamesAcademic GamesAcademic Games is a U.S. competition in which players win by out-thinking each other in mathematics, language arts, and social studies. Formal tournaments are organized by local leagues, and on a national level by the Academic Games Leagues of America...
- Debate Team
- German
- RoboticsLego MindstormsThe LEGO Mindstorm series of kits contain software and hardware to create small, customizable and programmable robots. They include a programmable 'Brick' computer that controls the system, a set of modular sensors and motors, and LEGO parts from the Technics line to create the mechanical...
- National Junior Honor Society
- Odyssey of the Mind
- Safe School Ambassadors
- Band President and Representatives
- SECMESECMESECME is a nonprofit organization originally established in 1975. The organization is based in Atlanta, Georgia at the Georgia Institute of Technology...
Buildings
The main school building was formerly called "Building 051," south of IBMIBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
's main complex (now T-REX Corporate Center). After IBM abandoned most of their operations in Palm Beach County, it was left vacant until being gutted into the academic building of the new school. Other buildings on the school's campus were built new, including a cafeteria, gymnasium, and other small utility buildings. Also on the school's campus is the Safe Schools Institute, a branch of The School District of Palm Beach County that is used for district training and can be rented out as a conference center. The Safe Schools Institute works with the school and on testing student management strategies such as CHAMPS, which is used as part of the "Single School Culture" program at Don Estridge.
Architecture
All of the original IBM buildings, including the main school building, were designed by architect Marcel BreuerMarcel Breuer
Marcel Lajos Breuer , was a Hungarian-born modernist, architect and furniture designer of Jewish descent. One of the masters of Modernism, Breuer displayed interest in modular construction and simple forms.- Life and work :Known to his friends and associates as Lajkó, Breuer studied and taught at...
. The other buildings on the school campus, which were constructed specifically for the school, are designed to incorporate elements of the modern architecture of the original IBM buildings. These buildings were designed by the West Palm Beach
West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and is the most populous city in and county seat of Palm Beach County, the third most populous county in Florida with a 2010 population of 1,320,134. The city is also the oldest incorporated municipality in South Florida...
division of BRPH Architects, and built by Boynton Beach
Boynton Beach, Florida
Boynton Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 60,389 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the city had a population of 66,714 according to the University of Florida, Bureau of Economic and Business Research...
-based Catalfumo Construction and Development, Inc.
School Dedication
The school was officially dedicated to Don Estridge (known as the "father of the IBM PC") at the school dedication ceremony on May 11, 2005. This event, which was attended by over 300 people, was simulcastSimulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
to every classroom by the Broadcast Communications class. A video known as "The Dedication Video" was produced by the same class and shown at the event to promote some of the technology that used at the school. A central event at the dedication ceremony was the presentation of Don Estridge's own original IBM PC
IBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, is the original version and progenitor of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform. It is IBM model number 5150, and was introduced on August 12, 1981...
, which was previously in the possession of his family. Plans to showcase the PC in the school office are currently underway.
School Rating
Each year the school is rated by the students performance on the FCATFlorida Comprehensive Assessment Test
The Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, or the FCAT , is the standardized test used in the primary and secondary public schools of Florida...
.
| Year | School Grade |
|---|---|
| 2005 | A |
| 2006 | A |
| 2007 | A |
| 2008 | A |
| 2009 | A |
| 2010 | A |