About Us
At a Glance
Carver Middle School
624 E. Oklahoma Pl.
Tulsa, Oklahoma 74106
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Phone: 918-925-1420
Principal: Elton Sykes
At a glance
Student Population
615
Extracurricular Offerings
14
Athletic Programs
6
Pre-Advanced Placement and Middle Years Programme Offerings
42
George Washington Carver is a diverse middle school with a focus on academic excellence. Carver students excel as citizens, problem-solvers, collaborators, and athletes that benefit from engaging learning opportunities in the classroom with their talented teachers and off-campus with a range of extracurricular options and experiential learning opportunities.
Carver Middle School is an academic magnet school that follows the Middle Years Programme (International Baccalaureate) framework. Students must apply and be screened by our school selection committee for admission. Students are selected based on grades, test scores, attendance, behavior, and teacher recommendation.
The MYP program encourages students to obtain a global perspective through the courses taught, both core academic and elective offerings. Students receive instruction in English/language arts, geography and United States history, science, and mathematics. In the elective offerings, students receive instruction in world languages, instrumental and vocal music, visual art, technology education and consumer science, and physical education. In addition to the core academic courses offered, students may receive high school credit in algebra, geometry, science, and world language.
Each grade level participates in thematic units which bring together elements of each course of study. Sixth graders complete an in-depth study of George Washington Carver, seventh graders conduct a shelter building unit as well as holding a joint program with our sister school in Tiberias, Israel, and eighth graders participate in a boat building unit as well as an in-depth study of the Civil War.
AT CARVER MIDDLE SCHOOL, STUDENTS CAN:
- Experience a wide range of academic, elective and athletic offerings;
- Broaden their social and personal experiences as a member of a diverse student body; and
- Prepare for success in high school with our Middle Years Programme.
MIDDLE YEARS PROGRAMME
The Middle Years Programme is a challenging framework that encourages students to make practical connections between their studies and the real world. The MYP is a five-year program, which can be implemented in a partnership between schools, or in several abbreviated (two, three or four year) formats. Carver partners with Booker T. Washington High School to offer the five-year program.
Mission
Carver Middle School is committed to empowering all students to be inquirers and to meet high academic standards in a nurturing, enriching, supportive environment where individual differences and talents are respected. At Carver, academic excellence is promoted and lifelong learning is strongly encouraged. Critical, creative, and higher level thinking skills are developed, while connections among all disciplines are provided, and students are empowered to become productive citizens of the global community.
Vision
We are a community of lifelong learners with unlimited potential who welcome diversity, embrace challenge, strive for excellence, and celebrate personal growth for every member of the Carver Middle School family.
History
Namesake
George Washington Carver (1864-1943) was born a slave in Diamond Grove, Missouri. He is one of the nation's most famous agricultural scientists and is best known for his research on peanuts and his commitment to helping poor Southern African-American farmers. He is also known for actively promoting alternative crops to cotton and methods to prevent soil depletion. In an era of racial polarization, his fame reached beyond the African American community. He was widely recognized and praised in the white community for his many achievements and talents. In 1941, Time magazine dubbed Carver a “Black Leonardo.” Carver worked at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama for most of his adult life. He was the head of the agricultural department and director of agricultural research at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama from 1886 to 1943. In 1943, soon after Carver's death, President Franklin D. Roosevelt made Carver's boyhood home a national monument. It was the first national monument to honor an African American.
Key Contributions
Carver is widely known for developing industrial uses for peanuts and methods to prevent soil depletion and improve the productivity of farm land. His work is widely considered to have improved the quality of life for millions. His legacy of determination, intelligence, and ingenuity are consistent with community values.
Just about everyone would respect and look up to Carver as his contributions positively affected all people. Carver is a symbol of the intellectual achievements of African Americans immediately after the abolition of slavery. However, Carver appeared to be uninterested in the role his image played in the racial politics of the time. His desire in life was simply to serve humanity. His work, which began for the sake of the poorest of the African American sharecroppers, paved the way for a better life for the entire South.
History of our school
The school opened in 1928. This is the time frame of the Great Depression and Dust Bowl in Oklahoma, when Carver’s contributions to society would have been greatly respected and appreciated by all.
Leadership
Principal Elton Sykes
Originally from Chicago, Elton Sykes graduated from Tufts University with an undergraduate degree in political science and was accepted into the Teach for America program. Teach for America selects applicants nationwide to serve in a highly acclaimed national service corps where applicants commit to teach for two years in an under-resourced urban region to help close the educational gap. Teach for America sent Mr. Sykes to complete his two years of service at McLain High School in Tulsa. Elton taught English for four years at McLain and also served the Dean of Students. He fell in love with the profession at McLain and decided to pursue a career in administration. During this time, Mr. Sykes graduated from the University of Oklahoma with his master’s in education administration curriculum and supervision. He was then promoted to be an assistant principal at Memorial High School in 2013 and also served as an assistant principal at Booker T. Washington High School from 2015 - 2017. Mr. Sykes currently serves as principal of George Washington Carver Middle School and is working on his educational doctoral degree from the University of Oklahoma, with a planned graduation date of 2021. Mr. Sykes has a strong belief that an education can change one’s life trajectory and he wants to ensure that every child receives a quality education no matter what they look like or where they live.
Assistant Principal Joy Parnosky
Contact us
Elton Sykes
Principal
sykesel@tulsaschools.org
Joy Parnosky
Assistant Principal
parnojo@tulsaschools.org