Ottoson Middle School

Ottoson Middle School
Location
63 Acton Street Arlington, MA, USA
Information
Type	Public
Motto	"You Otto' do the right thing"
Founder	Goodman Brown
Dean	Dean Smith
Principal	Timothy Ruggere
Grades	6-8
Number of students	1000+
Color(s)	Maroon/Red, Gray, and White
Mascot	Otto the Bulldog
Newspaper	The Ottoson Chronicle
Website	http://www.arlington.k12.ma.us/ottoson/

Ottoson Middle School (OMS for short) is a middle school in Arlington, Massachusetts, United States, serving students in grades 6–8. The principal of the school is Tim Ruggere. The assistant principals are Jack Flood and John J. Gonsalves. Before, there were two middle schools in Arlington, one in the East Arlington (the Gibbs) and one in the Arlington Heights, which is now Ottoson Middle School. Ottoson has over 1000 students about 60 teachers, and less than 50 other staff members. The mascot is Otto the Bulldog and the school colors are maroon and gray.

Clusters

At the Ottoson, students are divided into clusters. As of the 2010-2011 school year, clusters have been called teams. However, the majority of the student population continues to refer to them as 'clusters' due to ingrained habits. There are three clusters in each grade, and each cluster has one teacher for Math, Science, Social Studies, and English as well as special education liaisons.

Curriculum

Students at Ottoson take a core curriculum that includes English, Science, History/Geography, and Math. They also take courses in family and consumer science, physical education, keyboarding, art, music, drama, and technology. Students may choose to study Spanish, French, or Latin. Students may also choose to take band, orchestra, or chorus.

Extra Curricular

Sports teams include hockey, wrestling , cheerleading, and high-intensity badminton, and a high devolved, 2011 American Football team, Called the Ottoson Bulldogs. There is also a recently founded cross country club. There is a literary magazine and newspaper, the Ottoson Chronicle, as well as a yearbook team. Boys and Girls Mentoring teams unite middle school and high school students. Clusters elect representatives to OSAC, the Ottoson Student Advisory Council, which plans dances and fund raisers. There is an AM/PM program for students that includes breakfast club, homework club, and sports options. During the 2010-2011 school year, a Gay-Straight Alliance began as an extra curricular club.

Ottoson Middle School participates in the 5-2-1 Jump Up and Go! Program through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, which provides many additional extra curricular activities for students. They also have an active chapter of World of Difference, a program of the Anti-Defamation League, which trains peer leaders to prevent bullying.

References

www.arlington.k12.ma.us/ottoson

Coordinates: 42°25′15.8″N 71°10′32.7″W / 42.421056°N 71.17575°W / 42.421056; -71.17575