Often in conversations about the teaching elementary vs. secondary students, it's easy to overlook those at the middle level. More than a simple overlap of both categories, children in these grades have their own unique needs. Fortunately, at our annual conference in Nashville, the NAESP Center for Middle-Level Leadership fellows had an opportunity to sit down with Katie Powell of the Association for Middle Level Education to discuss how principals can better understand and serve middle-level students.

Katie Powell is Director for Middle Level Programs at the Association for Middle Level Education.

Dr. Todd Brist is principal of Watertown Middle School in Watertown, South Dakota, and a fellow at the NAESP Center for Middle-Level Leadership.

Jessica Cabeen is principal of Austin Online Academy in Minnesota, as well as a past fellow at the NAESP Center for Middle-Level Leadership.