Greeting Dragons,

As Principal of Alfred I. duPont Middle School International Business & World Language Academy, I want to take this opportunity to share my excitement as we prepare for the 2025-2026 school year. I want to thank the entire Dragon Nation for continuing to strive for excellence through hard work, dedication, and teamwork. We are proud of the performance of our students on the most recent Florida Assessment of Student Thinking (FAST) exams. The students did an outstanding job in several high accountability areas, and the data shows an increase in performance compared to the 2023-2024 school year! We made significant gains in reading, math, and civics, increasing our overall performance by fifty-two points­­-a 5% improvement! I have no doubt our students will soar to new heights this year as they boldly “Ignite the Dragon Within!”

I am pleased to announce that we will be implementing a new scheduling configuration where students will attend seven 50-minute classes per day. Students will be enrolled in four core classes (ELA, Math Science, & Social Studies), electives, Intensive Reading*, Intensive Math*, and PE/Health. We will continue offering Pre-Early College, Biology, and Algebra I acceleration courses. We will also offer Art, French, Spanish, and Music this year. I am excited to welcome the new CSS program to duPont and look forward to meeting our new students and families as they join the Dragon Nation. In addition to our academic programs, students may try out for football, basketball, soccer, volleyball, softball, baseball, track, swimming, and cheerleading.

During orientation you will have an opportunity to meet with our community partners including Achievers for Life, TEAM UP, All Pro Dads, TRIO, and 5000 Role Models of Excellence. Parents, we also ask that you support our team by joining our School Advisory Council (SAC) and PTSA. SAC and PTSA meet on the second Tuesday of each month at 5:30pm and 6:00pm respectively. Do not forget to join us for Open House on September 9, 2025, at 6:00pm. Enjoy the rest of your summer and I look forward to meeting you during orientation!

Dr. Marilyn M. Barnwell

*Placement is based on prior year’s test scores.