| Students Getting Free Lunch | Year |
| 43% | 2009 |
| Date | Who | Comments |
| 7/29/2010 | other | I Hope this school is better ,My friends are going to this school and i hope they have a fun time there |
| 5/23/2010 | other | ppl give it a rest idc if u came from chesterfield wow how exsiting is that . ok just beacuse you went to chesterfield doesnt mean anything. petersburg and dinwiddie is struggling NO MONEY THTS WHY THERE NOT THE BEST BUT ATLEAST DMS IS BETTER. THINK ABOUT THIS some ppl have to go to a school that not great not great at all like peabody i have to go there next year and im going to be fine because i went to dinwiide schools and i learned what i need and now im in advanced classes im reding on a 8.4 and im only in 5th grade. IF U HAVE A PROBLEM WITH DMS AND YOUR MAD CAUSE YOUR KID IS GETTING BAD GRADES SO YOUR GOING TO MOVE THAT MAKES YOU AND YOUR CHILD A QUITER. BECAUSE IF YOUR CHILD IS SMART THEY COULD MAKE THE SCHOOL BE ACCREDIDED BYE |
| 2/12/2010 | parent | I have a 7th grader at Dinwiddie Middle and I have not been impressed. He attended Dinwiddie Elementary prior to DMS and it was great. The teachers are fun and effective. Although he wasn't a straight A student, he was making strong grades. He has spiraled downhill since attending DMS and I blame it on the atmosphere there. The majority of the teachers are negative and don't really seem like they even want to be there. My son literally hates going simply because his day is filled with being griped at and barking orders. There is no enthusiasm or positive attitude. How is a child supposed to succeed and enjoy his learning experience when he hates being there? The grades reflect this because he's gotten to where he says 'what's the point? We're moving out of state this summer and I look forward to a fresh middle school start. |
| 4/15/2009 | parent | As a parent who was happy with Dinwiddie County Schools I was shocked at the difference of the transition from elementary to the middle school. My son was able to not complete any assignments for 9 weeks and no one took the time to either contact me nor respond to written, emailed, and voicemail conact. Upon addressing the issue my son still is not doing well and it seems as if he will be passed without learning anything this year. The more I fight these issues the better his grades become even though his work is the same. I am highly disappointed with this level of the education in Dinwiddie County and will be moving out of the county I had raised my children in to change school systems. |
| 8/25/2008 | student | I was a student at dinwiddie middle school just a few years ago and i beleive that the reason the school is the way it is today is because of what the students do. It was not a bad school to go to. I got my education from there and i am doing fine at Dinwiddie High School. just because the surroundings are not the best it doesn't mean that you cannot get a good education there. Some of the teachers there were more helpful than anywhere that i have been. |
| 8/3/2007 | parent | I am very unhappy about my child's experience at DMS. The teachers have little to no control over the wild behavior of the students. There are too many kids in one classroom. I would advise anyone reading this to look into St. Joeseph's or some other local private school for grades 6-8 until some changes are made at the Middle school. |
| 5/21/2006 | parent | Mediocre school. My child certainly isn't flourishing. I am looking forward to moving so that I can pull her out of Dinwiddie schools. Don't move here unless you can afford to home school, or can send your child to private school. |
| 3/27/2006 | parent | The leadership in this school is minimal. My dealings with the administration were often met with patronizing comments. It got to the point that I had to seek the help of the Department of Education to get simple answers to what I thought were simple questions. There is inconsistent managment of student behavior. It is unbelievealbe what goes on in the hallways and bathrooms of this school. Where are the teachers, administrators, resource officer and other school personell when students are changing classes? There is little to no recognition of students who make the honor roll. There are minimal ways for parents to get involved. |
| 10/9/2005 | parent | Hi, My name is Faye Harvell and I have a son that just started at Dinwiddie Middle School. I have mixed emotions about this school but I will give it a try. My son currently have 4 A's and 2 B's on his progress report and I am very happy and proud of that. I will not bad mouth this school because I, too, am a product of it, however, I will stay involved so that I know what is going on with my son at all times and stay on top of things if his grades should start to fall. If Dinwiddie could control the discplinary problems, it would be a great learning experience for all. Parents, take a stand and get involved with your child's education. Help the teachers help your child. |
| 8/1/2005 | parent | I have read most of the posts on this site and I must say the negative comes from the people who have moved to Dinwiddie and are used to higher quality education. This should tell us something about the lack of quality in our county. When we moved here from Chesterfield my daughter was an A student, and she left the elementary school here in Dinwiddie with a 3.8 grade average. While in the Middle school she had no challenges and became bored, struggled, so I home schooled to finish the 8th grade she is now back on track (honor roll) and we do intend to give the high school a try. My recommendation DO NOT send your child to the middle school its a joke! The only people who like the school are those who have never had anything better meaning the people who have always lived here. |
| 1/15/2005 | parent | As a lifetime resident of Dinwiddie County, I am proud to be a product of Dinwiddie Schools. My son now attends DMS and is having a great experience. Yes, it is crowded. Yes, it is not perfect. However, my son participates in a wonderful enrichment program in which he has learned digital photography; plays the trumpet under the guidance of a great band teacher; loves PE class; has challenging classes; and has made lots of new friends. People who move here from large suburban areas are correct that rural Dinwiddie is not able to provide some of the same school programs. But, DMS really does have a lot to offer our kids if we make the most of what we have - teachers who care about our children and some really terrific activities. As parents, we should be positive and support our schools. Volunteer. Attend meetings. Get involved. |
| 11/20/2004 | student | I attend Dinwiddie Middle School and I think that we need to get funded. They took away our bookbags and made the rules even more strict! I think that they are not teach the kids what they need to know. My friend moved and he said that the school in Chesterfield is move challanging to him and he is actually learning something. Thats my stand point on Dinwiddie Middle School-Studentbody-Heather (sorry for any misspelt words) |
| 8/18/2004 | parent | My daughter will be enetering the 7th grade at DMS. The school is not accredited and I see absolutely no plans by school administrators to aggressively change this academic problem. The teachers (for the most part) are doing everything they can. The principals have no clue what or how to deal with behavior problems or how to align the curriculums with SOL test expecations. THere is little to no communication between parents and the school. It is rare when you can get anyone to return simplistic phone calls. It is aggrevating, frustrating and appauling that a public school can conduct itself in such a manner. We wait so we can enter the high school and breathe a sigh of relief. |
| 7/14/2004 | parent | I married and moved my oldest daughter to Dinwiddie from Chesterfield. In Chesterfield she was a great student but when she atarted Dinwiddie middle she was bored because she was used to more advanced classes. The had no strings program and in Chesterfield she played the violin, she had to give it up. The county does not support the music program at all. Dinwiddie middle is the pits and is the only school in this county keeping us from advancing and getting more state and federal funding because they can not pass the sol test..Wake up folks---something is so wrong. I have two smaller children ages 4 and 2 and I will not let them go to Dinwiddie middle-we will move to a better school first-I just hope if they go to the elementary schhol here they can keep up someplace else. |
| 6/7/2004 | parent | I moved to this area two years ago and was very dissappionted with the conditions of this school. I have two children on the Elementary level and on in the Middle School. I must say that I am much more pleased the the Elementary school. I believe a big problem at the Middle School is over crowding. Each of my daughter's class has at least 30 students and therr is also little controll of the classrooms . I don't blame the teaching staff I believe they are doing the best they can with what they have. Dinwiddie School Board and the County as a whole need reevaluate what is important and pay some attention to the children of the community. The school should be a place of learning not some sort of contaiment center. Needless to say two years is all I can stand of Dinwiddie Schools. My children won't be returning. |
| 4/26/2004 | former student | dinwiddie middle school is the best middle school in the whole world! when I attended the school, I always felt like I was getting a great education, and I'll always miss dinwiddie middle! |
| 4/1/2004 | parent | I think Dinwiddie Middle School is great. I attended when it was Dinwiddie Junior High, now my daughter attends. The teachers are wonderful. There is one teacher especially that I commend for keeping me on top on my daughter's progress. She even called me when there was a special test. Overall staff, teachers, and students are a A+. And also I'm so glad they started a 8th grade girls team. This gives my daughter a headstart on 9th grade, J.V, and Varsity. Thanks again. |
| 1/29/2004 | parent | We moved here in September from upstate New York and I was very disappointed with how far behind this school system is. My daughter is in 8th grade and was used to doing homework for at least 3 hours every day. She loved her spanish, tech and computer classes , but she was way to advanced in those and she didn't 'need' to take those at all anymore. She is a straight A student but is mostly very bored due to the fact that most of the material is familliar to her. We were never offered to put her into any advanced classes and when I asked about that I was only told that those have already been filled. I love this area but I wish there would be more that could be done for my daughter since we can not afford to sent her to private school. Maybe 9th grade will give her more opportunities. |
| 9/9/2003 | parent | I had my child in a school in another state for elementary school. When I moved to VA and enrolled my child I was very surprised to find out that the schools in this area are very slow. Needless to say my child was doing work in the 6th and 7th grade that was being taught in 3rd through 5th grade. My child is now in a mandatory class that was taught 1st trough 5th. The schools in this area need to teach the children to learn.Every teacher I have com across is more worried about the SOL and the children passing it. I understand that the school need funding, however the children need to be taught, not schooled on how to pass a test. |
| 9/3/2003 | parent | Dinwiddie has a fince school system and is a wonderful area to live in. I was born and raised here along with my daughter. So far we have had no big problems at all. I give Dinwiddie an A for the highest rating. Teachers and principals are the greatest you can have. Thanks for making my childs learning experiences a great one. |
| 8/11/2003 | parent | Hi , I thimk that Dinwiddie Middle school, VA is a very , very good school. I'm from around the area and this year I'm sending my child to that school. I know if I do so I would have no worrys. 1-10 , I would say '9' |
| 5/13/2003 | | i would only let my child go to kindergarden in dinwiddie and after that go to another state for the rest of their schooling . |