Longfellow Middle School is expanding how it connects students to clubs, mentors and after-school activities as the McLean-area school navigates enrollment shifts and a countywide push to strengthen middle school belonging.

FCPS Superintendent Michelle Reid highlighted Longfellow in her Weekly Reflections on Tuesday, Sept. 8, noting students are finding their interests and building confidence through after-school opportunities, clubs and relationships with caring adults. The feature is part of the district's "Shining a Light on Success" series.

Principal Christina Butzer, who leads the school that enrolled 1,209 students in 2025-26, was the focus of the profile. According to the school, Butzer described how Longfellow uses after-school activities, clubs and relationships with caring adults to help students feel connected during the transition to middle school.

That transition looks different this fall. Under boundary changes the School Board approved in January, 107 students who would have attended Longfellow were reassigned to Cooper Middle School, eliminating a split feeder from Spring Hill Elementary and an attendance island. Longfellow draws from eight feeder elementary schools, including Chesterbrook, Churchill, Haycock, Kent Gardens, Lemon Road, Sherman, Timber Lane and Westgate.

The school serves grades 7 and 8. More than 58 languages are spoken in students' homes.

Longfellow's activity roster runs deep. Academic teams include Science Olympiad, MathCounts, Science Bowl, Quiz Bowl, Debate and Model UN. The performing arts program covers band, chorus, orchestra and theatre. Leadership groups include Student Council, National Junior Honor Society and Sources of Strength peer leaders.

Science Olympiad alone has won 19 Virginia state championships since 2002, including 13 consecutive titles as of December 2025.

For incoming seventh graders, the school runs Jumpstart to Success, a summer program focused on study skills, time management and getting comfortable in the building. The program costs $30, with financial assistance available. McLean High School's Operation Homebase club also runs a Military Mentorship Program at Longfellow to help eighth graders prepare for the move to high school.

In September 2025, after three Longfellow students used CPR skills learned at school to help save a classmate's father, Butzer said: "They made a difference in the community because of it."

Building student belonging is the second goal of the FCPS 2023-30 Strategic Plan. The district is also working to secure funding for after-school programming at all 27 public middle schools. As FFXnow reported Aug. 19, FCPS leaders were exploring voluntary donations and public-private partnerships as a compromise in a funding dispute between the Board of Supervisors and the School Board. That question remains unresolved.