Principals tell APS board WEB mentoring raised middle-school belonging, early assessment gains

Several middle-school principals and WEB coordinators used the public forum at the Nov. 5 Albuquerque Public Schools board meeting to report early gains from the district's WEB (Where Everybody Belongs) program and related middle-school redesign work.

Matthew Burrows, principal of Wilson Middle School, said the school's pairing of collaborative teacher teams and the WEB mentor program led to a stronger sense of belonging and measurable gains in Panorama survey results. "Our sense of belonging at our school grew from our last semester to this semester by 6% from 32 to 38%," Burrows said. He attributed the gains to team teaching and student mentorship that increased engagement among both students and teachers.

Crystal Friedman, principal at Eisenhower Middle School, described WEB as a program that pairs incoming sixth graders with trained eighth-grade leaders. Friedman said the initiative reduced social anxiety, produced stronger engagement and led to higher Panorama scores. "WEB has helped us create a culture where every student feels seen, supported, and like they truly belong," Friedman said.

Other speakers from John Adams, Desert Ridge, LBJ and Jefferson middle schools reported similar outcomes: increases on Panorama indicators (examples cited in public comments included 4% and 7% gains at specific campuses, and a 10-point increase in sense of belonging for one school's sixth graders), stronger teacher collaboration and fewer discipline referrals. Several principals credited organized 90-day plans, targeted instructional work and trained WEB coaches for the improvements.

These accounts came during the public-comment period; no board action was taken on WEB at the meeting. Administrators later referenced the WEB initiative when discussing how social-emotional supports and adult team structures connect to academic goals in the monitoring report discussion.