Middle School

Advisories are mixed gender, grade level groups that consist of an average of eight students. Each advisory is led by a faculty or staff advisor. Time is spent checking in and guiding students with regard to academic, social, emotional, and behavioral progress. It is a place where students engage, relax, play games, get to know each other and their advisors, and have some fun. One objective of Middle School advisories is to strengthen connections between students and faculty and staff, resulting in every student being known on a personal level. Advisors serve as the first point of contact if parents have concerns about their students.

Explore a sample Middle School schedule.

At University Liggett Middle School, we have adopted houses as a way to build community and promote positive multi-age and cross-grade level relationships. At the beginning of each school year, new middle school students are sorted into one of six houses, Harry Potter-style. Each house is populated by a cross-section of students from all grade levels, teachers and an honorary senior administrator, providing opportunities for students, regardless of age, to lead and showcase their strengths throughout projects and competitions throughout the year.

Since 1972, the sixth grade has embarked on a week-long immersion experience, currently at Pleasant Lake near Imlay City, Michigan. Students are introduced to a variety of outdoor skills (including canoeing, horsemanship, and orienteering) through medieval-themed activities. The seventh-grade outing challenges students to hone their survival skills (fire-building and creating a shelter, to name a few). The eighth-grade trip takes students to a new environment – the city! Students are challenged to use their navigation skills to explore Detroit and Chicago, while also enjoying museums and attractions unique to each locale.

Middle School students are offered an array of co-curricular opportunities. Our no-cut policy allows students the opportunity to participate in the after school activity or sport of their choice, including competitive athletic teams, robotics and theater, finding their interests and maximizing their passions as they gain confidence and self-esteem. Learn more about Robotics at University Liggett School. 

Our eighth-grade students embark on a self-directed environmental science research project during one quarter of the school year. This project is a platform wherein students pose a scientific question, conduct relevant research, develop and conduct an experiment to test a theory, analyze results, and present findings. The purpose of this project is to help students apply the skills they have learned in the Middle School Science program to lay the foundation for more comprehensive, self-directed research projects, like the Upper School Academic Research Program, later in the students’ academic lives here at University Liggett School. Learn more about the Upper School Academic Research Program. 

Learning extends beyond our walls with a robust Middle School physical education program. Classes promote a cooperative environment in which students see the importance of communication and collaboration where both sharing and listening to ideas is encouraged. All students learn to recognize, accept, and value their strengths, as well as the strengths of others. Active participation and goal setting challenge students to achieve their personal best. Learn more about Athletics in Middle School.

Student Led Clubs provide an opportunity within the school day for students to connect outside of the classroom, share their passions and develop budding leadership skills. The offerings are driven by a range of student interests and passions and vary by trimester. Students interested in leading a club solicit a faculty sponsor, develop a framework of activities for their club, and pitch the club idea to their peers at a Club Fair. Student Led Clubs provide the opportunity to learn new skills, support existing interests, stay physically active, and connect with friends and classmates across the division. From Astrology and Human Rights to Spikeball and Minecraft, students are able to lead, and participate, from a place of passion.

In the Middle School, students have the opportunity to express themselves across a range of artistic platforms. Got the acting bug? Move through a program that provides a taste of theater from production to performance with stops in design along the way. Feeling the beat? Students can meaningfully create, perform, and respond to music from a variety of time periods and cultures while refining technique and skill.  Want to work on a work of art? Visual artists can develop their strengths, discover their interests, and cultivate their own unique creative voice. Learn more about the Arts in Middle School.

Student choice and passion is a pathway to engagement, and a foundational tenet of the Liggett Approach. Our Middle School electives support this mission by offering students a selection of courses that spark enthusiasm and curiosity. Electives including Innovation and Design, where students use how to use Design Thinking and digital tools to solve local and global issues, and Film Making, where students produce a 3 to 5 short film using digital media techniques and software, allow students to explore and expand on their passions. Learn about all of our Middle School 2021-2022 academic year electives.

Problem solving is everything, so our Middle School offers a dedicated space to do just that. Our Maker Space, also known as The Knights’ Forge, is a space consisting of three adjacent makerspace rooms that support students in the design thinking process: Design, Prototype, Fabricate and Test. While there is a design thinking class that every middle schooler takes, students from all divisions have access to this innovative space. Students build projects that address questions and problems by coding, and the use of C&C machines, 3D printers, laser cutters and a variety of traditional conduction and manufacturing tools. In our mission to make school  matter, Maker Space gives students the opportunity to create artifacts that demonstrate their understanding.