Middleton High improves

After years of problems, Middleton High School is on the mend.

That was the message Hillsborough County schools Superintendent MaryEllen Elia delivered to a gathering of school supporters Saturday.

Elia urged them to spread the word of Middleton's rebirth, especially to parents of middle-school students who might one day attend the East Tampa school.

The midyear status report drew about two dozen Middleton boosters and an equal number of school district officials. The two-hour meeting followed a similar session in July that drew more than 200 people.

Calvin Simmons, Middleton alumni association president, said Saturday's low turnout was a good thing.

"Based on the size of the crowd, you can get a sense of what kind of news you have," Simmons said. "We have positive news this time."

Middleton spent last year on the state Department of Education's watch list because students performed poorly on standardized tests. Middleton's D rating made it a target for intervention.

Achievements at school

So how is Middleton improving? Elia rattled off a long list:

•School officials have poured more than $1 million into the school to boost teachers' skills and student performance.

•Enrollment has rebounded about 21 percent from the 934 students in 2008-09.

•The percentage of students being held back a grade has dropped from 20 percent last year to less than 16 percent so far this year.

•School officials expect students to take about 800 Advanced Placement tests this year, an 18 percent increase over last year.

•Dozens of new computers have been installed to help teach science, math and career skills.

•Three new school buses ferry students who live within walking distance of Middleton to give them a safer route home.

Making successful students

"We want those investments to translate out as successful students," Elia said.

As she spoke, more than 1,300 students from 56 high schools across Florida were gathering a few yards away in Middleton's cafeteria for a mathematics competition.

Middleton houses a magnet school that includes tracks for aerospace engineering, videogame design and Web page construction.

Magnet school enrollment has climbed in recent years, but Elia didn't say how many of those students came from Middleton in the first place.

Elia gave Principal Owen Young, who was appointed in the fall, much of the credit for turning the school around. Discipline continues to improve on Young's watch, she said.

Young said there is still much work to do, and he pleaded for more community support, particularly from parents.

"It is clear to me that the school can't do it alone," he said.