San Jose Middle School

A woman with long blonde hair smiles at the camera, wearing a white sweater and earrings.

Principal Whitney McEachern

Welcome!

At San Jose Middle School, our staff, parents, and community partners work together to provide a safe and nurturing learning environment for all students, and prepare them for success in high school, post-secondary opportunities, and the workplace.

We aim to offer rigorous and supported academics, engaging arts and technology electives, and interventions to support students in their individual gifts and challenges.

Parents and community members are welcomed and integrated into the life of the school. We appreciate you entrusting your students to us and believe a strong parent-educator partnership gives our youth the best possible foundation for their future.

Large blue and yellow letters spell out 'WELCOME SCORPIONS!' on a grassy lawn in front of a school building.

Three young people wearing blue shirts with the words 'SJMS Leadership' and a scorpion logo.

School Profile

Set in the rolling hills of Novato, San Jose Intermediate is home to a beautiful campus with spectacular views of nature, welcoming staff and a vibrant community.

The school draws its enrollment of roughly 650 students from various district elementary schools including nearby Loma Verde, Lynwood and Rancho Elementary.

Twice named a California Distinguished School, San Jose prides itself on strong academics and exceptional support for student learning. We strive to offer rigorous academic programs, engaging arts and technology electives, an effective social-emotional curriculum, and ready interventions to help students overcome barriers to success. Our aim is to prepare young adults for success in high school, post-secondary learning, and the workplace, and support their development into capable, responsible and caring citizens.

A close-up portrait of a young woman with curly brown hair, smiling softly.

Our Mission

The Novato Unified School District is an innovative and effective education system that provides diverse academic experiences to meet individual student needs, and challenges students to realize their educational potential.

Our Vision

We at SJMS inspire and empower each other to be Lifelong Learners, Community Builders, and Change Makers.

Lifelong Learner

Values learning and is motivated to gain new knowledge
Perseveres through challenges in the learning process
Examines different points of view

Community Builder

Models empathy, respect, and responsibility
Demonstrates collaboration, camaraderie, and values differences
Seeks global awareness and forms relationships with the greater community

Change Maker

Advocates for self and others
Leads by example
Finds solutions
Searches for ways to improve school and community

Virtual Tour
Thinking about San Jose Middle School for next year? Here’s a recorded virtual tour to share a bit about our school and community.
Diversity

We have an especially diverse student body and believe that greatly enriches our community. Our team works hard to provide a safe and nurturing learning environment where all students can thrive, whatever their individual needs, abilities, backgrounds and economic circumstances.
San Jose Intermediate maintains several school-wide programs to provide support and interventions for student success: Title I, English Language Program, a Resource Program, Speech and Language Services, Family Outreach, and a Community Closet.

Our teachers use Project-Based Learning (PBL) to engage students deeply in learning, encourage collaboration, inspire critical thinking, and build communication skills.

We offer an exceptional list of elective classes, giving students an opportunity to participate in Band, Drama, Theater Tech, Art, Technology, Avid, Leadership, and Spanish.

We also encourage students to participate in an assortment of out-of-school enrichment activities including Mathletes, Cross Country and Track, Yearbook, and Book Club, and partner with The Bridge program to offer excellent after-school care for students on campus every day that school is in session. (All programs are subject to COVID safety guidelines and may operate remotely as needed.)

Student Support

It is the goal of San Jose Middle to assist students in their social and personal development as well as academics. The school gives special attention to students who experience achievement problems, difficulty coping with personal and family problems, trouble with decision making, or handling peer pressure. The table lists the support service personnel available at San Jose Middle School.

San Jose Middle School provides special education services to students who are assessed and found to be eligible. Programs and services designed to meet the student’s needs are identified in their Individualized Education Plans (IEP). Resource Specialists serve those students with exceptional needs who are able to function in the regular classroom for the majority of the day. These students receive individual, small group, or classroom instruction designed to meet their identified needs.

Designated Instructional Services are provided to students who are eligible for occupational therapy, speech therapy, or other services.

Special Day Classes are available to students who require special education for more than 50% of the school day.
San Jose Middle School offers our English Language Learner (ELL) extensive support through our fully developed language acquisition program. Our teachers are trained by Clark Consulting (CCT) and receive regular coaching and ongoing training. Parents of English Language Learners are supported by our ELAC (English Learner Advisory Committee) and our Spanish-speaking Community Liaison. San Jose Middle School is piloting AVID EXCEL – a program for Long Term English Language Learners or newly redesignated students who want to develop and progress on goals for post-secondary success.
As a district, our goal is to provide support to teachers and schools so that every student is challenged and makes significant progress during each school year. GATE is a district-designed and funded program for highly capable students. NUSD does not receive supplemental funding for our GATE program.

Novato has designed the GATE program with 5 principles in mind:
- All educators are responsible for the education of students with gifts and talents.
- Services should be provided throughout the day in all environments based on their abilities, needs and interests.
- Giftedness is dynamic and constantly changing.
- Giftedness is found among students from a variety of backgrounds.
- Student education is focused on student outcomes rather than practices.
San Jose Middle School provides study center during and after school and an intervention class in Math. For students in danger of failing, there are after school mentoring classes and individual support. Title 1 funds support the needs of all students and provide additional education opportunities for students who need support.

A boy and a woman high-five in a library setting, with bookshelves in the background.

Electives & Enrichment Activities

Three friends stand together, smiling and looking excited.

Middle school years are the time for young people to explore and discover their interests. We offer a rich array of elective classes and enrichment activities that develop students’ interests, talents and social skills, including these and more

Elective Classes

Band
Choir
Drama
Technology
Leadership
Spanish

Extracurricular Activities

Clubs
The County Spelling Bee
Mathletes
Intramural Sports
Cross Country and Track
Yearbook

After-School Enrichment

Archery
Ice Skating
Cooking
Sketching & Painting
Coding
Flag Football

Visit our Electives and After-School Enrichment pages for the latest offerings.

San Jose Intermediate has a fully developed AVID program that provides support and inspiration for students who are aiming for college as their post-secondary objective. Each year, students participating in AVID have an opportunity to visit a junior college campus, a university, or participate in college week in preparation for high school. This year, the program was expanded to include AVID EXCEL – a program specifically designed for advanced language learners.
Parents play an integral role in the life of the school, serving inside and outside the classroom on the PTA, School Site Council, District Advisory Committee, Calendar, Title 1, DELAC, Novato Foundation for Public Education, and others.

Opportunities to get involved include WEB day (orientation for 6th grade), 8th-grade promotion activities, Campus Beautification, and support of our many Band and Drama performances and competitions. One favorite tradition at San Jose Middle School is “Lunch on the Lawn,” where parents join their students at school for lunch on one of four separate opportunities during the year.

Our very active ELAC group (English Learner Advisory Committee) meets regularly to understand how to support their students and the school. The Piqe program is offered each year in Spanish to teach parents skills in navigating an educational system that may be unfamiliar.
Originally constructed in 1962, the San Jose Middle School campus is comprised of 31 classrooms, a gym, a library, a main office building with a staff lounge, a model classroom (with 21st-century furniture and learning technology), a track, blacktop area, and football, soccer, and softball fields. There is a performance space for drama productions and a band and choir room. A recently renovated wing houses counseling offices and a large art studio. Air-conditioned rooms offer a comfortable environment for learning.

The school’s library provides extensive reference, special interest, educational, and recreational books. Students regularly visit the library with their classes and are encouraged to visit before and after school and at lunch. Computers and printers are available within the library, so students are able to access resources and information there as well as on their individual Chromebooks. Speakers often visit the library and a monthly book club meets there. Artwork and academic projects often are curated and displayed in the library. Perhaps the most popular offering is the study center for students which is available every day at lunch and three days a week after school.
All students at San Jose Intermediate have their own device provided by NUSD and “Measure G’. Computer skills and concepts are integrated throughout the curriculum which helps students use this technology to become proficient in the core academic areas. Additionally, the technology class introduces students to coding and robotics. Every grade level teaches from the Common Sense Cyber Safety and Digital Citizenship curriculum.
There’s a place for you, too.
Join us and thrive here.