Nova Middle School

2020 22nd Avenue Southeast

Olympia, WA 98501

25 Reviews

School District
Grade

6-8
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by other on December 02, 2023

NOVA has been the perfect fit for our daughter. She has found community, belonging, academic challenge and rewards. Most importantly, being at NOVA has helped her recognize, develop, and showcase her inner strengths as a student and as a human. As a result, I have watched her grow from an awkward 6th grader to a confident 8th grader who is excited about high school and the journey beyond.
Submitted by student on April 23, 2023

This school is very engaging and fun
Submitted by other on June 02, 2022

As an alumnus of NOVA, I highly recommend the school. I transferred to NOVA during my last year of middle and all of my teachers and classmates were very welcoming. Because it is such a small school the community is very tight-knit. The teacher-to-student ratio was also pretty low, which I really appreciated. There was a huge variety of enrichment classes. The teachers were all very supportive and helped us achieve high academic achievements. NOVA really help me be prepared for high school. Because of the classes, I took at NOVA I was able to receive some credits for science classes. There were also beginning-of-the-year and end-of-the-year trips that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Submitted by other on June 01, 2022

I transferred into the school for 8th grade - my class was already tight-knit, but students were welcoming and I was able to learn in a safe and inviting environment. Teachers were supportive and fostered my learning, I was able to "fit in" and join the community that had already been 'created.' Of course, transferring in for the last year had it's challenges as the program is made to have students attend from 6-8th grade, but I sincerely believe that I was able to have a good experience. 4 stars as I believe that I would have had a different experience had I attended from 6th grade, many of the teachers I admired have since then been let go, and because my memory is not the clearest. Neutral rating for special education as I do not know enough about it - I'm unsure if there even is a curriculum for students who require different support and accommodations.
Submitted by parent on May 23, 2022

My child is curious and highly engaged. They needed an experience that was more immersive. They are challenged, but not overwhelmed. They have had an opportunity to start Spanish and other classes which I believe are important to modern learning, but not always offered. As a parent, the school offers lot of opportunities for parents to connect, socialize, and build community. They use a single simple app - TeacherEase for everything!!! As a parent I feel way more connected in with what my kid is learning and experiencing at school.
Submitted by parent on February 05, 2022

Our child is thriving at Nova Middle School. He is welcomed there with thoughtfulness and acceptance by the faculty and staff. His asynchronous development (gifted in some aspects of his intellectual and emotional self, delayed in others) are embraced by Nova and met with lots of individualized support. We've seen him develop his own internal motivations for learning, and more and more, an ability to stretch into the aspects of learning that are most difficult for him. Our student loves the deep coverage of geography in 6th grade, elective class choices, and how the teachers incorporate art into difference projects. We appreciate the guidance counselor's communication with our family and her sincere interest in helping our student understand his needs and advocate for himself.
Submitted by student on November 10, 2021

I really like all the teachers here and everyone is super cool and nice to each other. we do have to do a bit of homework but it helps us prepare for high school! I would definitely think about going here because it helped me learn a lot this year! there is no bullying and the teachers are open to talking to the parents about finding ways to help a child learn more efficiently or better if they need help.
Submitted by parent on April 21, 2020

I am so grateful for NOVA. My son started middle school at a public middle school and started sinking immediately. After being accepted to NOVA, we thought things would magically be different, but he had the same struggles. The teachers and support staff were incredibly observant and proactive. Together we tried many strategies, some of which helped and some of which did not. After these attempts, they gently recommended testing, where we learned for the first time he has ADHD. Knowing this has given us more compassion and willingness to experiment with what will work. There is so much amazing interaction with the teachers. I cannot stress how proactive they all are. It makes it feel like we’re on a team – for the success of one child.
Submitted by parent on March 04, 2020

Fantastic. We had 2 of my kids go here. Helped them mature!!
Submitted by parent on December 13, 2019

A school with a sense of community. The teachers here are incredible and create such a rich curriculum that supports the entire child. The commitment from the entire school to develop students with integrity, compassion and a joyful place to learn. My son loves to go to school everyday. He has grown in all areas and I feel that he is now ready for high school and beyond. The things he has learned here are the foundation for his future and he is beyond ready. Thanks Nova school from the bottom of my heart! Nova school has exceeded our expectations in every way.!
Submitted by parent on July 01, 2019

Our two daughters went through NOVA and our whole family was very happy with the experience. The school does an incredible job of preparing students socially, emotionally, and academically for high school. Our only wish is that they had a NOVA high school, as both of my kids really miss the tight knit NOVA community as they transitioned to a much larger public high school.
Submitted by other on May 09, 2019

Wonderful! Way too much homework, but that makes high school super easy
Submitted by parent on April 20, 2019

Our family could not be more happy with our experience at Nova. It has exceeded our expectations and we highly recommend the school to others.
Submitted by parent on March 24, 2019

Excellent education in a socially supportive environment.
Submitted by parent on February 28, 2019

NOVA is a one-of-a-kind community of students, parents, teachers, and administrators. Our family has been amazed by the quality of the school curriculum and the social emotional support for each student as they develop and mature through their middle school years. Our child continues to love school and be inspired by her teachers and classmates. When our child first joined the NOVA community, she didn’t know any of the other students. She made an easy transition. The faculty and staff made sure each and every kid was making connections with peers and facilitated some of those connections where a little extra help was needed. This is a school of caring, inclusive, creative academic types. Each child is celebrated and encouraged as a unique individual. It has been a perfect fit for our family, and I would recommend to any family with an academically excited middle schooler.
Submitted by parent on February 03, 2019

I have had several kids go to NOVA Middle School. They are very different kids, yet it has made such an impact on each of them. I've asked them how NOVA has made a difference to them. Each describes it as a crucial stepping stone in their growth as learners. The school makes a safe social space where differences are honored and celebrated, and it offers an academic environment that emphasizes curiosity, ownership of your own learning, and a sense of wonder and fun about learning. I can remember my first kid complaining about school being cancelled for snow and asking me to drive her to school anyway-- "Someone will be there. I want to go to school." What kid wants to go to school on a snow day? That's when I realized something really amazing was going on at NOVA. Another of my kids told me, "Being around the other students who really cared about learning, too, kept me challenging myself when I had thought I knew everything back in 5th grade." I've had some of my own peers talk to me about the apathy, cockiness, or disconnection that their middle school and high school age children have demonstrated. I have not seen that from my kids, nor from their other NOVA friends. The dedicated, thoughtful teachers work to create engaged students who are in charge of their own success. The students have a wide selection of electives to choose from three times a year to explore lots of new or continued interests. But the NOVA experience has really been about my kids having the opportunity to transition to young adults in a wonderful learning environment with great influences, joyful peers, and plenty of intentional self-reflection. My father told me recently that he never realized how vitally important the middle school years were until he watched the transformation of his own grandchildren during their years at NOVA Middle School.
Submitted by parent on September 17, 2018

Tuition (and parent volunteering requirement) is far too high for the benefit received. Many teachers are pretty good but the administration is a joke- no leadership and they never listen to student opinions. They coddle students in a way that makes them uncomfortable; they like to interfere in student's personal lives totally inappropriately for a school. They leave students with few friends (way too isolated socially) and graduates are totally unprepared for public high school.
Submitted by parent on January 03, 2018

My daughter has nearly completed her time at NOVA and she has had an excellent experience...she often states that she wishes NOVA had a high school option because she doesn't want to leave. She also give us feedback that its nice to go to school with other kids that are focused on learning, interested in their environment and are high achievers. The environment provided for learning is exceptional. Proactive attention to the student body as a community and as individuals is obvious in daily interactions at the school, via communication through a regular weekly newsletter and additional email contacts to parents and the student body. The Head of School and new Curriculum Director are readily available and attentive to parental input. It's obvious that the teachers know your child well and have spent the time to give customized reviews and comments at conference time...not something that we found with all teachers at our public grade school. It's been wonderful to be at a school that cares and is available for discussion. I think the required parental volunteer hours are a bonus to the parents, the kids and the school. We've enjoyed our time volunteering in so many ways and the options for volunteering are numerous. In response to a review below that states "they are only interested in money"....NOVA is a private school that relies on funding from tuition and donation to function, of course they will be fundraising. Much of the fundraising is used to go towards scholarships and I have not found it to be offensive or obtrusive. Almost daily either my husband or I say to each other how glad we are that we found NOVA and decided to give our daughter this middle school opportunity. We would highly recommend NOVA for any highly capable middle school student!
Submitted by parent on December 05, 2017

Our decision to send our daughter to NOVA was supported by the many alumni parents whose kids were in college. They all shared the common reflection that the education at NOVA helped to make them confident and caring adults. That made an impression on my decision to invest in their education in the middle school years. I also felt that NOVA was small enough to meet the growing academic and social needs and yet big enough to give my daughter the middle school experience.
Submitted by parent on November 02, 2017

It has been a great fit for both of our children - academically and socially. They were challenged to work hard, but the work was rewarding for them and they were consistently happy. In the end, they will both make the move to high school with solid skills and with a strong sense of who they want to be in future school settings.