Mention Junior High or Middle School to many adults and it often conjures up less than stellar memories.  The awkwardness, bullying, cliques, you name it.  Yet, at the same time, this transition to High School is critical to the academic future of students as they shift gears to more challenging learning.

Grace Academy Middle School for Girls in downtown Hartford is changing all of this…and the results were plain to see in our visit there last month.  Grace Academy teaches some 60 girls in grades 5-8, and Jane’s friend Lindsey works with the school…and invited us to a luncheon in January to meet the girls and their staff.  These teenagers were so nice–smart, polite, disciplined and determined to succeed.  Great to see this school making a big difference in these girls’ lives.

If you’d like to contribute your time or money to Grace Academy so they can continue to build these girls’ character and brains, please visit their website to see a variety of ways you can help.  Below are a few photos from their event and click here for some more…