ASHLAND — On the second floor of Ashland Middle School, there’s a classroom that doesn’t look much like a classroom.
Instead of orderly rows of desks, there are tables and chairs spread out in the room. Tucked away in the corner of the space is a relaxing nook with a beanbag chair, an ivy-covered archway and a fake tree, meant to evoke a soothing scene of nature.
Throughout the classroom, educational and informational posters are sparse. Instead, the room is covered in tree decals, hanging string lights, and reminders for students’ birthdays.
And where a normal classroom may be painted a dull white or beige, this room’s front wall sports a bright blue hue.
This classroom, the only one like it at Ashland Middle School, is the home of the ACES (Arrows Connection for Educational Success) program, an alternate schedule and setting for a handful of students that struggle with a normal, nine-period middle school day.
The program got its start in the 2022-2023 school year after teachers and administrators decided to create it to improve the school’s culture and better serve its students.
“It’s sort of cliche, but I think most people, you’re trying to meet kids where they’re at. And that’s what we’re doing with this. We’re trying to really meet kids where they’re at,” Ashland Middle School co-principal Jim Lindeman said.
Since then, office visits for students in the ACES program are down by 99 percent, and grades and attendance are up, ACES teacher Trudi Tilton said.
Instead of going around the school from period to period, the 16 ACES students stay in their colorful classroom all day under the supervision of Tilton and teacher’s aid Cheryl Norris.
Students start the day by taking attendance and listening to announcements, then Tilton goes over what each student needs to accomplish academically for the day.
Students can work one-on-one with teachers or handle their work on their own, resulting in “pockets” of activity in the classroom.
“Somebody that just walked by might think there’s nothing going on in that room cause there might be a kid laying on the floor,” Tilton said.
“And for me it’s not about if the kid is sitting rigid in a chair, if the kid is still accomplishing what needs to happen, I don’t have a problem where that kid is at to do that.”
Scattered around the room are a number of puzzles and “STEM manipulatives” that students can use when they need to take a break from school work and decompress, providing a level of flexibility that traditional classrooms “can’t afford,” Tilton said.
When the weather is nice, students can also go outside and use exercise equipment or the training field to make up for the movement they lose by staying in the same room all day.
“That’s huge for any middle schooler. Like just being able to move and break up the time in the classroom,” Tilton said.
When ACES first started, the students resisted the program. Now as ACES’ first year nears its end, some students are signing up for another year with the program.
The students’ parents, who participated in “tough conversations” about their child’s performance in school before ACES, are now “extremely happy” about the academic progress their child is making.
“I’ve even had a parent say, ‘I wish there would’ve been an ACEs when I was in school,'” Tilton said.
Despite glowing reviews from some students and their parents, “it would be crazy” for Tilton to think that ACES is a perfect program after just one year.
She’s already working on tweaks and adjustments to the program that will build on “a very successful year,” she said.
The ACES students also get a say in what the program’s future looks like. At the end of every semester, Tilton asks them for their “pluses” and “minuses” about
“If the kids aren’t happy with it, then we’ve really missed the mark,” she said.