Five Forks Middle School
Highest Level of Learning for All Students in All Classes
- Five Forks MS
- About FFMS
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Fast Facts
Address: 3250 River Drive, Lawrenceville, GA 30044
The following have served as principals of Five Forks Middle School:1978- 1981 Ivan Bagby
1981- 1984 Dr. Edith Belden
1984- 1989 Dr. Michael O'Neal1989- 2000 Ron Pennington
2000- 2005 Nancy Martin
2005- 2012 Dr. Mary Hensien
2012- 2015 Peggy Goodman
2015- Present Christine Douthart
School Colors: Maroon and Gold
School Mascot: Bronco
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The History of Five Forks Middle School
Five Forks Middle School was named after its predecessor, the old Five Forks School, and the community of Five Forks. Gwinnett County had an abundance of small-unincorporated communities dating back to the 1800s. At the focal point of one such area, five roads met. One road went northeast past a school; the others went west to Gloster, east to Snellville, north to Lawrenceville and south to Mountain Park. Since the school and community were centered around the meeting of these five points, they gradually became known to the local population as Five Forks. The five forks existed for 100 years. With the opening of Brookwood High School in 1981, the northeast branch has since been blocked off. Five Forks Middle School is located at 3250 River Road, Lawrenceville. Its doors opened in January of 1977. Five Forks was built as a result of rapid growth in the western and central portions of Gwinnett County. Existing schools, which provided students for the new attendance zone, were Trickum, Sweetwater, and Snellville middle schools.
Five Forks has always operated at or over capacity. Portable classrooms have been a common feature of the Five Forks landscape. The opening of Shiloh Middle School in 1982 and J. E. Richards Middle School in 1987 was of some help in alleviating a crowded situation, and the construction of a new wing, which began operation in April 1989, also provided needed "breathing room". Five Forks Middle School has been recognized for academic excellence on several occasions. In 1983-84 and 1987-88, Five Forks was a Gwinnett County School of Excellence and Georgia School of Excellence. Five Forks was recognized as a National School of Excellence in 1988. Five Forks Middle School was recognized by the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement as a Silver level winner for both Highest Performing School and as a Greatest Gains School under Georgia’s Single Statewide Accountability System. Highest Performing schools exhibit high academic performance by earning a three-year average CCRPI Achievement Score in at least the 93rd percentile, with no score below 80.0 for all three years. Greatest Gains schools exhibit high growth by earning a three-year average CCRPI Progress Score in at least the 93rd percentile and remain in the same CCRPI range during the three years.
The Five Forks Middle School mascot, the Phantom, was selected in a student contest while the students were attending double sessions at Trickum Middle School waiting for Five Forks to open. The students submitted original ideas for the name of the mascot, its appearance, and its colors. After much debate and discussion, the student body voted and selected the silver and black Phantom. The Five Forks community adopted the mascot and colors of the Brookwood Cluster in 1997. The Five Forks Mascot is now the Bronco, as each of the seven schools in the Brookwood cluster share the same mascot.