MOUNTAIN MIDDLE SCHOOL is a free, public, state chartered school located in Durango, Colorado, providing education to 4th – 8th grade students, with a focus on integrating technology into project-based learning in a safe environment.
About Us
MMS Mission
A Culture of Excellence
Insisting on high standards benefits all students!
“When students enter a family culture, a community culture, or a school culture that demands and supports excellence, they work to fit into that culture. A culture of excellence transcends race, class and geography; it doesn’t matter what color, income, or background the children come from. Once those children enter a culture with a powerful ethic, that ethic becomes their norm. It’s what they know.”
-From Ron Berger, An Ethic of Excellence
Habits of Heart and Mind
Fostering character is not an add-on at Mountain Middle School – it is embedded in all aspects of our school culture and permeates academic studies. Character is a focus all day long.
Mountain Middle School defines Habits of Heart and Mind as having two facets – relational character and performance character.
- Relational character focuses on Respect and Integrity
Relational character skills are essential for positive collaboration, ethical interaction, appropriate participation, and personal responsibility for actions. - Performance character focuses on Effort and Refinement
Performance character skills (habits of scholarship) are needed to obtain a standard of excellence in academic or real-world endeavors.
Both types of character are essential for success in school and in life.
Academic learning at Mountain Middle School is seen not as an end to itself, but rather in service of preparing students to contribute to a better world. Therefore, all learning is character-based.