Robbinsville High School will join Pond Road Middle School in implementing the AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) program, aimed at preparing students for college and career success.
AVID is in its third year at Pond Road Middle School and will be implemented in the high school for the 2025-26 school year.
AVID is a college and career readiness system designed to support students—particularly those in the academic middle—by providing them with the skills, strategies, and support needed to succeed in rigorous coursework and prepare them for future opportunities. It emphasizes organization, critical thinking and collaboration.
“AVID is a non-profit organization in 47 states,” said school district news release. “Using the tenets of leadership, culture, instruction and systems as guideposts, AVID has a proven record of success in schools nationwide, with 90 percent of participating students accepted to four-year colleges.”
The district will implement AVID strategies in two primary ways: an elective class where 40% of the curriculum is focused on targeted “tutorology” and the adoption of schoolwide best instructional practices.
Tutorology is part of the elective class that seeks to engage students who show high academic potential that has not yet been actualized.
Students in this “middle” zone can apply to be part of the AVID elective class with a literacy and critical thinking-based lens, designed to help them succeed in rigorous academic settings.
The tutoring elective replicates a typical classroom. Unique to most high school setups, however, students remain with the same teacher over the four-year elective cycle.
The curriculum is inquiry based; students will be taught to identify their own points of confusion and seek assistance from proper sources.
College students will be brought into the classroom as the tutors to act as resources for the middle and high schoolers, helping them pinpoint their areas of struggle and develop crucial real-world skills such as problem solving.They also serve as role models for these students.
“The AVID elective course has been very successful in fostering academic success,” Interim Superintendent Jeff Gorman said. “Teachers have noticed increased performance in participating students, and we look forward to seeing its impact at the high school level.”
In addition to the elective, AVID strategies are also implemented school-wide through the adoption of student-centered activities to promote writing, inquiry, collaboration, organization and reading skills.
These student-centered activities include regular usage of Socratic Seminars designed to enhance students’ ability to ask critical questions and engage in thoughtful discussion.
“Our partnership with AVID is helping us create an environment of academic rigor in all our classrooms,” Gorman said. “We are pleased to be among 8,000 schools adopting AVID learning techniques and believe it will lead to even more successful student outcomes as our students prepare for lifelong learning and opportunity.”
