School Information

Mascot: Wildcat
Colors: Purple, Teal, and Black

Mission Statement

Through a constant emphasis on Responsibility, Relationships, and Resilience, we will provide a superior academic, physical, and social/emotional education that supports all students towards being happy and healthy life-long learners, productive citizens, and caring adults.

Motto

• Responsibility: Take ownership of all your actions, decisions, and thoughts - right or wrong.
• Relationships:   Conduct positive interactions with all people at all times.
• Resilience:  Do better today than you did yesterday and success will come.

Philosophy

At Clear Creek Middle School, we proudly uphold a philosophy rooted in Equity, Inclusion, Engagement, and Belonging.

 

Equity is the driving force behind all that we do. We recognize that every student enters our doors with a unique set of strengths, challenges, and dreams. Our commitment to equity ensures that each individual is provided with the resources, opportunities, and support needed to flourish academically, socially, and emotionally. We believe that success is not determined by where one starts, but by the journey of growth we undertake together.

 

Inclusion is the heartbeat of our school community. We understand that diversity enriches our collective experience, and we embrace the multitude of backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives that define us. Inclusion means that every voice is valued, every story is heard, and every student feels a sense of belonging. Our classrooms are spaces where differences are celebrated and connections are forged, nurturing a vibrant tapestry of learning and understanding.

 

Engagement is the bridge that connects students, educators, families, and the broader community. We are committed to fostering a dynamic and interactive learning environment that ignites curiosity, fosters collaboration, and sparks a lifelong love for learning. Our teachers create experiences that captivate minds and inspire exploration, empowering students to take ownership of their education and become active participants in shaping their own futures.

 

Belonging is the foundation upon which our school stands. We cultivate a culture where every student, staff member, and family member feels valued, respected, and supported. It is in this environment of trust and acceptance that students can develop the self-confidence and resilience necessary to overcome challenges and embrace opportunities. Our commitment to belonging ensures that everyone finds a place to shine and contribute.

 

At Clear Creek Middle School, we are not merely a school; we are a community dedicated to nurturing responsible, empathetic, and empowered individuals who will make positive contributions to the world. Join us in creating a future where equity is a reality, inclusion is a practice, engagement is a passion, and belonging is a fundamental right.

CCMS Equity Statement

We believe each student has assets that enhance the Clear Creek Middle School community, and our job is to nurture their potential.

1. We believe all students have potential that is enhanced by their individual experiences including their race, ethnicity, culture, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, home language, country of origin and religious preference.

2. We believe all families want their child to have academic success and a positive social emotional experience.

3. We believe all students must be seen, heard, and valued in order to actively engage in their learning.

4. We believe all members of our community are bound in collectivism and our strength lies in our solidarity.

The Clear Creek Middle School community commits to identifying and eliminating systems of oppression within our school and we commit to advancing systems that empower our students to achieve academic and social emotional success.

1. We commit to decentering dominant culture in order to see and hear other perspectives.

2. We commit to using a culturally relevant equity lens when making decisions about student and family engagement strategies, curriculum, discipline practices, resource allocation, and school improvement planning.

3. We commit to recognizing every family’s contributions and centering student and family voices.

4. We commit to building relationships and staying engaged in courageous conversations with students, families, and colleagues which includes sitting in discomfort, resisting defensiveness, and seeking support.

School Improvement Goals

• Increase student growth in both math and reading.
• Increase family engagement in middle school by fostering stronger partnerships between families and the school.
• Continue developing and enhancing the Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) framework, implementation, and systemwide strategies to support all students.

School Structure

Grade level teaming and building positive relationships with students and families to support the academic, behavioral, social-emotional development during the middle school experience is key. 6th-grade students will experience a unique teaming model as their classes will be in close proximity and provide support in a smaller setting as they acclimate to middle school. Similarly, the 7th and 8th grade students will be grouped into teams to prepare for the transition to high school. Teachers continue to rely on effective practices related to Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBiS) and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support to assess and respond to students' academic, behavioral, and attendance needs.

Programs, Core and Elective Classes

We are not only proud of the building, but also of the programs we offer to the students attending Clear Creek. Along with those core area subjects, students who attend Clear Creek will at some time during their middle school years have the opportunity to take classes in vocal music, instrumental music, Science/Technology/Engineering/Art/Math (STEAM), art, AVID, ecology, fitness and additional electives as the staffing and scheduling allow. All students have daily physical education or health classes.

At CCMS, staff and students strive for a Special Education inclusion model, reducing the time students are removed from general education classes. Highly qualified Educational Resource Teachers and assistants provide specially designed and differentiated instruction for students on IEPs in math, English language arts, and science classes. A highly successful English Language Development staff meets the needs of English Language Learners (ELL) and provides support to core teachers for monitored ELL students. Strategic hiring has attracted bilingual, bicultural staff who are able to supplement and extend support for ELL and other students who need additional exposure to and use of academic language. 

Clear Creek is also designated by Multnomah County as a charter SUN School (Schools Uniting Neighborhoods). Through this program, a variety of after-school activities for students is available, as well as offerings to support parents and families. The classes provide academic support, STEM opportunities, athletics, and special interest classes to promote positive experiences and social interactions with peers, the community, and the environment. On average, approximately 60% of the student body participates in SUN co-curricular activities throughout the year before and after school. Students attending the after-school activities receive an evening meal and are transported home after 5:30 when the session ends. Additional programs are offered during winter, spring, and summer breaks. Since 2016, SUN has been managed by El Programa Hispano, and offers culturally specific services to students and families, while continuing to provide after-school programming for all students and families.

School History

Clear Creek Middle School was opened in September of 1993. Our school is located in Gresham, Oregon. If you were to visit Clear Creek, we would be proud to show you a facility that was designed with middle school students in mind. From well-planned instrumental and vocal music classrooms to classroom pod areas to a centralized media center, advanced computer lab, two makerspaces, and a newly renovated STEAM lab, you will see spaces that are well used and cared for by students and staff. In 2011, Clear Creek became the first school in Oregon to be recognized as an AVID National Demonstration Site.

Through a collaborative 21st Century Career-Technical Education Grant from the Oregon Department of Education in 2013, Clear Creek and the Center for Advanced Learning began reimagining what STEAM education and career pathways could be. As the success of the STEAM program grew, additional grants and awards from competitions accelerated the technology available in the school to students and staff.

• In 2017, CCMS recognized by Samsung Solve for Tomorrow as the state-level winner, garnering a $25,000 award for partnership with the local Lambert House adult care facility to create memory tasks for residents. This project began a tradition of STEAM partnerships to open opportunities for students.
• In 2018, CCMS was again selected as the state-level winner and became 1 of 10 schools in the nation to attend a pitch event in New York for the “Life Hatch” for residents during hurricanes. The team brought home $50,000 in prize money for technology improvements in the school. 
• In 2019, the STEAM project was not awarded by Samsung, but local partnerships got behind the creation of the mobile STEAM lab creating the Tomorrow Bus to open access and equity to district schools in need of technology and STEAM project resources.
• In 2020, CCMS students and staff again were selected as the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow state-level winner, collecting $15,000 in prize money for their work to improve traffic flow for first responders. 
• In 2020, CCMS was selected by Verizon Innovative Learning Schools (VILS), providing high-end laptops to every student and staff member, WIFI access, staff professional development, and an instructional technology coach on staff. 
• In 2021, CCMS was awarded a Verizon and Heart of America grant to renovate our current STEAM classroom, transforming it into a state-of-the-art innovation lab. This project is currently underway and should complete in mid-November and open to students and staff in the fall of 2022.
• Additional local grants and awards contributed funds to technology in classrooms, resulting in a shift in student-to-device ratios of 14:1 in 2011 to less than 1:1 currently. 

To complement these recognitions and external partnerships, the Gresham community passed a bond to renovate schools, and CCMS was updated in 2020 with an $11 million. Students returned to hybrid learning in the fall of 2021 to a new media center, updated cafeteria, classrooms with new furniture and instructional technology, updated heating and air systems, roof repairs, and refreshed interior aspects. Reopening to in-person learning as the COVID-19 pandemic continued allowed students and staff the first opportunity to begin to fully enjoy the improvements and new offerings.

Substantial investments from Measure 98 and the Student Success Act increased staffing levels in 2021. Additional courses were added to provide students with opportunities to learn core concepts through project-based, hands-on learning. In partnership with Portland General Electric, SOLVE, and the City of Gresham, reclamation efforts began on our 1-acre pond to create an ecology field site for science and elective classes. A collaboration with In4All will connect students with volunteers to apply design thinking models to study, collect data, research, and present solutions to improve the field site. This project continues to attract interest from partners and volunteer events to remove invasive species, re-introduce native plants, and develop and maintain outdoor learning areas and pathways.