J. Tanner Curry

07/19/2026

A Mother's Day Reflection

06/25/2026

We were honored to partner with National Institute for Excellence in Teaching in hosting a 3-day SCTS 4.0 Evaluator Training, bringing together our instructional leadership team, lead teachers, and educational leaders from some of our sister schools in Sumter School District as well as colleagues from a neighboring district for three days of powerful professional learning and collaboration.

This training marks just the beginning of what will be a close and consistent partnership with NIET throughout the coming school year as we continue building on the strong instructional practices already taking place across our school community. Our focus remains clear: investing deeply in our leadership capacity and empowering our teachers so that every classroom delivers Level 3 and 4 instruction and every child experiences the high-quality learning they deserve every single day.

We are excited about the work ahead and committed to making impactful gains that move teaching and learning forward for all students.

Thank you Angelina Burrows for partnering with Furman Middle School. Thank you Laura Tew for your dedication to supporting our growth.

05/09/2026

If we are going to honor mothers in education this , then we must be willing to ask harder questions about the cultures we lead.

Do the mothers in our schools feel seen as whole people?

Do they feel supported when life changes?

Do they feel safe enough to name exhaustion without being judged as less committed?

Do they feel permission to care for their own families without guilt?

Do our systems honor the humanity of the people we ask to serve children every day?

Because leadership is not merely about producing outcomes. Leadership is stewardship.

Sacrifice without support eventually becomes depletion. And depletion is not the same as devotion.

This Mother’s Day weekend, we are reflecting on the quiet sacrifices mothers make-the ones many of us did not fully understand until we became adults, spouses, parents, or leaders ourselves.

Especially the mothers in education: The ones who teach other people’s children all day, then go home exhausted and still try to be fully present for their own. The ones who work until the final days of pregnancy to preserve leave. The ones who serve as teacher, nurse, counselor, caregiver, advocate, and safe place.

As leaders, we cannot just admire sacrifice. We have to support the people making it.

Join us on the milk crate this week: https://bit.ly/4uF3Lg5

Honor the sacrifice. Lighten the load. It matters more than you know.

04/19/2026

Our Instructional Leadership Team at Furman Middle School recently engaged in intensive cluster training with our National Institute for Excellence in Teaching success coach, the great Ms. Laura Tew, with a focus on facilitating high quality teacher clusters.

Using NIET aligned practices, we strengthened how we lead collaboration, professional development, and data driven conversations to ensure every session is impactful. Teachers leave with clear tools, strategies, and actions that directly support instruction-no time wasted.

This work continues to build strong instructional systems and support consistent development toward stronger Level 3 and Level 4 teaching across our school.

02/20/2026

Our Instructional Leadership Team spent several powerful days learning alongside our coach as part of our partnership with National Institute for Excellence in Teaching. Together, we strengthened our data systems, refined support structures for teachers through clusters, conducted group walkthroughs to strengthen inter-rater reliability, and mapped out long-range plans designed to accelerate our momentum.

We’re proud of the progress we’re making and even more excited about what’s ahead. When leaders learn, students win - and we’re committed to continuing the climb!

03/19/2025

I had the pleasure of spending some time today with our piano students in Mr. Nash’s new piano class. I heard many joyful sounds and truly found inspiration in their passion for music. I am incredibly proud of our growing arts programs at Furman and the positive impact they have on our students. This is

01/03/2025

For a few hours this morning, our dedicated Furman Middle School instructional coaches and admin team came together to facilitate an engaging and productive teacher work session focused on instructional planning for next week. The focus was on instructional planning that aligns with the best practices outlined in the SCTS 4.0 rubric and integrating reset mini lessons during the first week back at school to set the tone for the semester ahead and ensuring that students are prepared and motivated to learn.

Moreover, we discussed strategies and planned for maintaining a classroom environment that fosters high-quality teaching and learning. Our goal is to create spaces where students feel safe, engaged, and excited about their educational journey.

A huge thank you to our instructional coaches and admin team for their leadership and support in empowering our teachers. Together, we are laying the foundation for a successful school year!

01/02/2025

Proud to work alongside these incredible Furman Middle School Tribe Leaders! Over the break, this dedicated team came together to collaborate, plan, and push forward on our journey toward excellence.

Their passion and commitment ensure we’re ready to make the 2nd semester of #2025 even more enriching and impactful for our students because "It's Game Time"!

12/10/2024

Don't forget to join us this evening at Furman Middle School for Winterfest Title I Community Open House, STEAM & Data Night! We have activities, art galleries, choral performances, special guest performances from one of our new Piano Lab students, Jacob Stephens, games, vendors, STEAM activities for children of all ages, and dinner/treats (cash only). Our new theatre program will put on his holiday play at 7pm in the gym. Proud of our choral ensemble, directed by Mrs. Claus, currently performing in our gym lobby.

This event is free and open to our Furman community and feeder schools Cherryvale Elementary School Manchester Elementary School, and Pocalla Springs Elementary.

11/23/2024

Proud of our current and former Furman Middle School Indians who represented Lakewood High School wrestling today in the “Fall Brawl” at Sumter High.