Middle School Tour

Welcome to Hampton Roads Academy! After you park in one of our visitor spaces, please enter through the main entrance, between the flagpoles.
Our receptionist will buzz you in and ask that you sign in and take a visitor badge. For current parents, after you have received your visitor badge, you are free to navigate the campus. All guests on campus are accompanied by a staff member.
Meet the Admission Team! Rebecca Bresee, James Hicks (center), and Michelle Ford are pleased you are here. Let’s head to the Lower School halls with Rebecca.
HRA has 15 grade levels, PreK (for 3’s), Junior K (for 4’s), and K through 12. We all share one roof but each division, Lower, Middle, and Upper have their own designated areas within the building. This space we are in currently is the Anne Doug Spencer Student Commons, which is mainly used by Upper School students, but is also used by all for various activities before, during, and after school hours.
With all three divisions under one roof, we are able to share spaces such as the library, computer labs, dining hall, athletic facilities, hydroponics lab, the auditorium, and more. Through those doors is the Drucker courtyard. Students enjoy this space socially and academically. We are standing in the Phillips Commons now, but will turn right to meet the Middle School team.
This hallway is where our 5th and 6th grade students take a majority of their classes. Lockers are grouped by grade level to make it easy for students to navigate between classes. You may notice that there are no locks on our lockers and charging stations throughout the hallways. This is a result of our well-respected Honor Code. HRA 5th grade is unique in that as Middle School students, they have multiple teachers and classrooms to visit. This helps strengthen our students’ time management and organizational skills at an earlier age.
Let’s take a look inside the classroom. Each teacher has the freedom to arrange their classroom in a way that best suits them and their students. Additionally, HRA is not tied to state SOL’s, so our teachers move through their material at a pace that is appropriate for that section of students. This can be accomplished because of the small class sizes. An average student/teacher ratio in the Middle School is approximately 14 to 1. This allows the teacher to give individual attention to each student.
Here is the HRA Middle School science lab. We believe in hands-on learning at HRA! Our students spend time working individually as well as in groups. Working in teams is something we do across all industries, why not start learning these skills at an early age?
Down the hall and to the left is our Administrative Hallway, housing the Business Office (financial affairs), Nurse’s Clinic (a full time nurse on staff), Spirit store (school apparel), and…
The office of our Head of School, Peter Mertz!. Mr. Mertz has led HRA for the past nine years and has been the visionary credited with multiple physical and programmatic additions to our school, including the latest addition, the new Lower School and Dining Hall wing. We will head there eventually, but first let’s continue through Middle School. Next, let’s head down to the 7th and 8th grade hallway.
Our 8th grade students have the ability to take Upper School level classes in areas like foreign language, math, and the arts. Middle School Students' daily schedules allow them to take electives in subjects they have interest in, as well as the core subject courses. Electives are available through 12th grade.
Don’t worry, we built time in their schedules so they can meet with teachers for help and participate in the clubs of their choice. We think it's important for middle schoolers to learn how to become good students. This doesn’t just mean getting good grades, it also means learning how to communicate effectively with teachers and other students, organize group projects, engage in extra-curriculars like sports and community service, and how to be a good citizen and uphold the HRA Core Values: Honesty, Respect, and Responsibility.
Here we have the Stacy Philips ’03 Fine Arts Gallery. Throughout the year we display a variety of art work across many grade levels. All of the art on our campus was created by current and former students. The Phillips Gallery not only showcases our students’ amazing work, but it is also the entrance into our Auditorium.
The 500 seat Lassen Auditorium houses MANY activities, from Middle and Upper School homeroom meetings to the performing arts classes in all grade levels. Your child will be up on that stage wowing you with their public speaking, receiving athletic awards, and one day walking across the stage at their graduation ceremony.
HRA Middle School students are able to begin to learn or continue playing an instrument of their choice, sing in chorus, or participate in a yearlong electives course that offers multiple arts, technology and guidance. Each quarter these students will rotate between the offerings.
NOW we are on our way down to the Dining Hall, but let’s stop by one of our many art studios on the way. This is the ceramics studio. Our students have the opportunity to learn a variety of art mediums from our dedicated fine arts faculty.
On the other side of the wall is the Martha H. Patten Hydroponics Lab. This is used by all grade levels. This lab, like all science labs, helps reinforce material being learned in class with more of that hands-on learning that we talked about earlier. My favorite part about the lab is that we use everything grown in our Dining Hall! Truly farm to table - well in this case water tower to table!
This is one of our students’ favorite locations on campus. The Mary and Larry Pope Dining Hall is the latest addition to our campus. Our Executive Chef and his team prepare a variety of healthy options from which our students can choose daily.
Students move through the service line, choosing one of two hot options (one is vegetarian) or they can visit the salad, deli, and soup bars. Lunch is a full part of the HRA program and is included in tuition, so all students enjoy fresh and healthy meals daily.
Next door is the HRA Athletic Complex. P.E. teachers utilize Carpenter Gym along with our athletic fields and tennis courts to expose students to a wide variety of organized sports and other games.
Starting in 6th grade, Middle School students can participate in a number of organized sports teams. 5th graders are able to join our Cross Country team. Soccer, Basketball, Baseball, Field Hockey, and Lacrosse are a few of the many sports our students can join at the Middle, Junior, and Varsity level. This is Spencer Gymnasium, where most indoor athletic contests happen!
For those interested in athletics, it all starts with a good foundation. We have a well-trained team that helps train, teach, and heal our students. We are fortunate to have a certified trainer. When she is not in the classroom, she is working with students in the weight room, on the athletic fields, or rehabilitating some unfortunate injuries. All of our coaches are trained in CPR, first aid, and concussion protocol.
We love excelling in athletics and academics. Our Student Athletes understand academics come first, but participation in athletics is important too. Many students graduate each year and go on to participate on collegiate teams.
Now let’s head on back to the main campus. As we make our way back to the Admission Office let’s stop by our Library and computer labs and take a look!
Students utilize our library for research, studying, and to take a few minutes to turn the pages of their latest read. Regardless, we encourage our students to take advantage of our Librarian and her resources. She helps students navigate our digital databases and guides them through the Library to locate a book for that History project they have due in a few weeks. Whatever their needs, she is here to help!
While we are a 1-to-1 iPad school, we still like to have our students spend time in the computer labs. Here you will find students learning to type, code, program and use a 3-D printer. All students in the Middle School are issued iPads. These devices allow students to interact in the classroom in ways you wouldn’t expect. Our students are able to participate in classroom discussions, read textbooks, complete and turn in assignments, all digitally!
Well, we are back! We hope you have enjoyed your tour of the HRA Middle School. Would you like to schedule a personal appointment? Contact us at admissions@hra.org. Questions are always welcome, and feel free to start the admission process, Apply Now! It’s a great time to be a Navigator!!

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