Paragon Prep Middle School

Do you want your child to be challenged? Live up to their full potential? Develop great relationships with teachers who will really appreciate their strengths and work to shore up their weaknesses? Make very good friends within a «family» atmosphere? Be able to play a sport even though she’s not the most athletic kid around? Then Paragon is your school.
We have two children at Paragon now and will put the youngest one in when he’s old enough. The middle school years are crucial for so many things… social and physical changes, developing academic motivation, learning study skills that will take them through high school, college and beyond. We really feel Paragon excels in helping our kids develop in all of these areas.
Instead of being in huge classes/​grades with tons of kids who are «jockeying» for social position and forming cliques, our kids have enjoyed small classes with 15 – 20 kids. Our daughter has 29 kids in her entire grade and knows every one of them well; she considers them like her brothers and sisters at this point, with all the good and bad siblings entail! Our son has told us that the best thing about Paragon is that already, just 10 weeks into his first year, Paragon «feels like family.»
Homework load is HEAVY. Middle school is a great time to make their own academic mistakes (forgotten homework, blown test, etc.) Paragon’s philosophy is allow the child to make the mistakes NOW (rather than in high school where the stakes are higher) and support the child as they learn how to «right the ship.»
Paragon’s motto is Work Hard, Play Hard… and they do. There will be long nights of challenging homework that encourages critical thinking and necessitates time management skills. Expect a minor breakdown at some point. But also watch as your child does what s/​he didn’t think she was capable of doing… succeeding at something very difficult. Over and over.
Play Hard comes in the form of class trips that encourage bonding, competitions between «colleges» (Paragon’s version of Hogwart’s Houses) as they collect candy or socks for the homeless, Field Days, geography bees and Fall Fests.
An unexpected benefit: Coach Bobby believes that everyone who wants to play a sport in middle school should do so… no one gets cut. My daughter, who admittedly is not very athletic, will have played on the basketball team for all three years, improving her play every year. If she was competing with 50 other kids for 10 spots on the team, she’d never have the opportunity. Middle school students are young enough that they should be trying new sports, being active and pushing their growing bodies in new ways. Paragon allows that to happen and our little bookworm is busting her butt this week to try to make the varsity «black» team. Very motivating!
I can’t say enough about the level of commitment Headmaster Dave McGrath has to the students and their families. When we did have an issue with a single teacher, we felt he heard our issues, wasn’t defensive and handled it in a firm, fair, constructive manner. Co-​founder and math teacher Mark Hathaway is wonderful as well and always has a smile on his face. They love quirky kids and work to help those kids channel those quirks into very positive, constructive outlets.
My daughter will tell you that, although she wasn’t happy Mom and Dad were putting her into private school when she wanted to go to our neighborhood public school, Paragon is «the best thing that ever happened to me.» It’s hard to top that kind of praise.