Principal Jerry Quinton is alone at mid-court of the new Mattei gym. Bob Wieland/Princeton Herald

First things first: Princeton’s newest middle school is pronounced “muh-TAY” and its teams will be the first Jaguars in the PISD. 

Mattei Middle School sits all alone on County Road 728 in South Princeton, waiting for the first class to arrive Aug. 10. James Elementary is under construction behind it. 

Principal Jerry Quinton, who was assistant principal at Lovelady High School the past two years, said projected enrollment was 541 at the start of summer but already had pushed past 600 pupils. 

“It’s growing every week,” he said, with about 40 kids added in the last seven days. Total enrollment could eventually max out at 1,000 students by the time another middle school is built. “They fill up relatively quickly,” he said.

Classrooms were still missing desks one week before the start of classes and teachers were bringing in supplies. School nurse Shelby Thomas had a room full of boxes to open and unpack.

“We’re getting all the bells and whistles up and running,” Quinton said. 

The principal said he had to open Lovelady two years ago. “Comparatively speaking, where we’re at right now, all the technology in the classrooms, desks in the classrooms, furniture, all that stuff, we’re way ahead of where we were back then,” he said. 

Lovelady teachers did not have chairs when that school opened, Quinton said. “They were back-ordered because of COVID and all that.”

On a recent tour of Mattei, the principal was obviously proud of his new school.

“One thing I try to do is, you work hard and take care of our facility,” he said. “Keep that attention to detail, looking after the school environment and the taxpayers’ money.”

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