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Category: Middle School

  • VA Middle School Students Use Rubin for Cursive Signatures, Ask for Lesson Extensions

    VA Middle School Students Use Rubin for Cursive Signatures, Ask for Lesson Extensions

    What happens when a group of middle school students enjoy a lesson so much that they ask the teacher for additional activities on the same topic?

    First, you check everyone’s temperature and make sure the class is feeling OK 🙂

    Then, you are grateful for a moment of educational bliss.

    That was the situation in October 2025 within the walls of Oscar Smith Middle School in Chesapeake, Virginia. CTE teachers at the school incorporate activities from Rubin’s Emerge employability skills curriculum on a weekly basis.

    The teachers weren’t sure how it would go with an activity called, “How to Sign Your Name in Cursive.” Would the students understand why it’s important to know how to write a first and last name by hand?

    The answer: an emphatic yes. The students loved the activity and took pride in the newfound ability to put their own name on paper. What’s more, the students asked for lesson extensions to complete ADDITIONAL cursive writing.

    Some days, you take the win and you don’t look back.

    “We’re giving students a lesson that is important to them,” said Dr. Anna Helmer, CTE program administrator for Chesapeake Public Schools. “As well, we connected the lesson with state standards for workplace readiness. A true win-win.”

    What happens when a group of middle school students enjoy a lesson so much that they ask the teacher for additional activities on the same topic? First, you check everyone’s temperature and make sure the class is feeling OK 🙂 Then, you are grateful for a moment of educational bliss. That was the situation in…

  • Alexandria (VA) CTE Students Watch 1,000+ Aspire Videos, Spend 43 Minutes Per Session

    Alexandria (VA) CTE Students Watch 1,000+ Aspire Videos, Spend 43 Minutes Per Session

    Middle and high school students in Alexandria City Public Schools (Northern Virginia) love Rubin Aspire career exploration videos.

    How do we know?

    In just two months, the students have watched 1,000+ Aspire career exploration video clips for jobs that include athletic trainer, surgical assistant, lab technician and many more.

    What’s more, the average time per session is 43 minutes. That’s right — students in the year 2025 stuck with an online educational product for the better part of an hour.

    “For our teachers and students, Aspire fills a gap,” said Sarah Black, CTE and work-based learning specialist in Alexandria. “Students want to see what jobs are out there in the world, and Aspire gives them the opportunity.”

    At Rubin, we believe in the power of partnership. We are thrilled that Aspire videos, delivered in Alexandria through the Canvas LMS, allow its CTE program to achieve twin goals of high-quality instruction and career readiness.

    Rubin Aspire usage statistics in Alexandria (Virginia) only two months into the 25-26 academic year.
    Rubin Founder Danny Rubin stands with Sarah Black and Dr. Tricia Jacobs, Alexandria CTE director, at a state gathering of CTE administrators in October 2025..

    Career exploration all day long.

  • Rubin Team Kicks Off School Year in Miami, NOVA

    Rubin Team Kicks Off School Year in Miami, NOVA

    The Rubin team was on the move the week of August 11 at back-to-school events with CTE teams in Miami-Dade, Florida and Prince William County, Virginia.

    Within each school district, we engaged with admins, showed teachers how to access Rubin Emerge and Aspire resources and, of course, passed out Rubin posters!

    Here is a selection of photos from the trip.

    Rubin Founder Danny Rubin smiles with Miami-Dade County Public Schools CTE Director Dr. Lupe Diaz.
    Miami-Dade CTE teachers discuss ways to use Rubin’s Emerge and Aspire products at the Opening of Schools event.
    Rubin Founder Danny Rubin poses with Prince William County CTE teachers after his workshop on using Rubin products in Canvas.

    Up and down the East Coast.

  • At Prince William Schools Workshop, Rubin is Glue between CTE, EL

    At Prince William Schools Workshop, Rubin is Glue between CTE, EL

    On April 24 in Prince William County (Northern Virginia), the Rubin team was part of a day-long workshop with CTE teacher leaders to determine ways Rubin employability content can bridge CTE and English Learners curricula.

    Prince William County Schools, the second-largest school district in Virginia, wants to make sure non-native English-speaking students can comprehend and excel at important communication skills for college and career.

    Rubin is privileged to be the resource that sits at the intersection of English Learners objectives and the needs of the CTE community.

    Prince William County Schools CTE teachers develop a lesson plan that combines a Rubin Emerge activity (ex: How to Leave a Voicemail) with the scaffolding necessary to teach the lesson to a non-native English speaking student.

    Prince William CTE Supervisor Christine Good said it best from her post on LinkedIn:

    “Student achievement begins with adult behaviors.

    When the adults in the room share a compelling vision and actively engage in critical thinking, collaboration, innovation, digital citizenship, and demonstrating resilience through their work, the conversations are rich and the outcomes are powerful. This dynamic team of teacher leaders is committed to creating the conditions for student success within and beyond the classroom!

    The collaboration between the Career and Technical Education (CTE) and the English Learner (EL) Instruction teams is Learning and Achievement for All in action as we prepare all staff members to support and challenge all students.

    Imagine what our classrooms and schools might look like if we shift the conversation from “all students” to “each and every student.” Small shifts leveraging high impact instructional strategies have the power to transform the learning environment for each and every student, every day.

    Special thanks to Grant Bradfield, Katie Min, Danny Rubin, and Shawnell Carmichael for leading a packed and impactful day of learning, and a big shoutout to the entire hashtag#PWCSCTE team Sarah Martin, Ph.D., Tim Vaughan, Nasir Ayoub, Danielle Meyer, Benjamin Stodola, and Diana Collins for working tirelessly behind the scenes to make opportunities like this possible.

    Looking forward to the 2025-26 school year!”

    Rubin Founder Danny Rubin (center) stands with Prince William County Schools (PWCS) Curriculum Supervisor Christine Good (left) and Supervisor of EL Instruction Kristine Lentz-Johnston. Rubin is collaborating with PWCS to connect workplace readiness skills with the needs of English learners.

    Every student deserve a chance at success.

  • New Record: Students Log 1.3 Million Minutes in Rubin Emerge in 23-24 Academic Year

    New Record: Students Log 1.3 Million Minutes in Rubin Emerge in 23-24 Academic Year

    Students nationwide spent 1.3 million minutes in Rubin’s Emerge curriculum for employability skills during the 23-24 academic year. As a comparison, students logged 375,000 minutes in the 22-23 academic year.

    Students in places like Las Vegas, Philadelphia, Charlotte, Fairfax County and more gained critical workplace readiness skills that employers and colleges want to see.

    Why the 4X increase in logged minutes?

    Our team works hard to bring on new school partners. Beyond that, we pore over the details to deliver our Moodle-based learning management system to school districts. We insist on single sign-on access when possible to eliminate the need for students to sign in with a traditional password or manually create an account.

    The ease of use allows students to visit Emerge with one click from their school’s LMS and engage right away with Emerge readings, videos, assignments and assessments for critical topics like email/phone etiquette, conversation skills, interview prep and more.

    Digging into the 1.3 million minutes, here are the most popular assignments students accessed:

    • Texting vs Emailing: 16,447 submissions
    • How to Compose a Subject Line: 12,877 submissions
    • How to Prepare Smart Interview Questions: 5,676 submissions
    • How to Set Your Own Voicemail: 3,996 submissions
    • How to Email an Instructor About a Poor Grade: 2,770 submissions

    “We focus every day on the student and teacher experience in Emerge,” said Rubin founder Danny Rubin. “When we see logged minutes jump into the millions, it says that we make it easy for customers to use our product — and to want to keep coming back for more. We continue to work in summer 2024 at the user experience because the journey and task is never done.”

    Explore Emerge for yourself and then request a free trial!

     

    4X increase from previous year

  • Rubin Propel Transforms Email Writing for Johnston County MS and HS Students

    Rubin Propel Transforms Email Writing for Johnston County MS and HS Students

    Subject line: [blank]

    Email message: turned in

    That is an email composed by a 9th grader in Johnston County, North Carolina during the spring 2024 semester.

    The trend to write emails like text messages is not unique to Johnston County, of course. In our digital era, students nationwide often don’t understand how to draft a professionally-written email.

    That’s why Johnston County piloted Rubin’s new Propel email etiquette tool in the spring semester for middle and high school students.

    Propel is a teaching tool for Gmail and Outlook that guides a student to compose a high-quality email. Propel does not use AI, and the tool requires students to do all the writing and critical thinking.

    See a 1-minute demonstration of Propel here.

    Let’s return to the email written by the 9th grader:

    Subject line: [blank]

    Email message: turned in

    With the help of Propel, here’s what the email became:

    Subject line: Completed work

    Email message:

    Good afternoon, Mrs. Roberts.

    I hope you are doing well.

    I wanted to let you know that I have completed my interview and turned it in.

    Thank you,

    – Alyssa

    Now observe the growth among 6th graders too.

    Here’s an example of a 6th grade email before Propel:

    Subject line: why i have 72 grade

    Email message: [blank]

    And here’s an email in which the student used Propel:

    Subject line: What I think the rabbit hole in Alice in Wonderland means

    Email message:

    Mrs. Woll,

    Good morning. This is Evy from second block.

    This is my answer for the journal prompt.

    I think the rabbit hole represents part of Alice’s personality, such as the unfocused part, or distracted or curious.

    Thank you for your time and effort for reading my answer for the journal prompt.

    – Evy 

    Johnston County 9th grade teacher Shelley Roberts: 

    “The Propel tool was easy to use and helped my students so much! It is disappointing that many of them have no idea what the correct format of a letter/email should be. This tool reintroduced terms like body and greeting. The students loved how easy the ‘fill in the blank’ process was.”

    Go here to try Propel for your school district!

    Night and day difference.

  • Students Log 1,000,000 Minutes All Time in Rubin Emerge

    Students Log 1,000,000 Minutes All Time in Rubin Emerge

    Students nationwide have spent 1,000,000 collective minutes in Emerge, our signature online curriculum that teaches in-demand employability topics like email/phone etiquette, networking and conversation skills.

    Emerge, which debuted in the 2020-2021 academic year, teaches valuable skills for college and career to students nationwide in grades 6-12 and higher education.

    Among the most popular assignments that comprise the 1,000,000 minutes:

    • How to learn the difference between texting and emailing
    • How to set your own voicemail
    • How to sign your name in cursive
    • How to take a quality headshot
    • How to email your instructor politely about a poor grade

    Emerge is a Netflix-style library of assignments, readings, videos and quizzes that integrates for single sign-on to the school’s learning management system (ex: Canvas, Schoology and Google Classroom).

    The lessons align with state standards across the country for workplace readiness, a critical set of life skills that prepares students for the world beyond graduation.

    In that way, Emerge has become a valued resource for school divisions big and small, from Fairfax County, the largest school system in Virginia, to Payette River Technical Academy in Emmett, Idaho.

    “Our goal is to give teachers high-quality resources to use in the classroom so we can’t always observe students using Emerge in real time,” said Danny Rubin, founder of Rubin. “When we see the number 1,000,000, it’s a powerful reminder that, yes, Emerge shapes students every day into kind, professional young adults — and that’s a mission worth pursuing to reach 2,000,000 and beyond.”

    Schedule a free trial of our resources today!

    —-

    Rubin is the leader in online instruction for employability or work readiness skills. The company, based in Virginia Beach, Virginia, provides three high-quality resources — Aspire, a career exploration video platform, Emerge, a communication skills curriculum and Propel, a real-time email etiquette training tool for Gmail and Outlook.

    Founded in 2017 by Danny Rubin, a former CBS television news reporter and consultant to NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Rubin teaches students nationwide important lessons for email/phone etiquette, networking, team communication, leadership communication and more. Our motto: “Write well, open doors!”

    Learning at scale

  • Educators Give High Marks for Rubin Emerge in Spring 2023 Survey

    Educators Give High Marks for Rubin Emerge in Spring 2023 Survey

    The results are in, and educators are pleased with their experience using the Rubin Emerge curriculum during the 2022-2023 academic year.

    Emerge is a digital library of activities, videos and assessments that help students with skills like email/phone etiquette, networking, team dynamics, entrepreneurship communication, leadership communication and more.

    In a survey administered in April 2023, a random sampling of 32 “Rubin” educators across middle school, high school and college feel strongly about Emerge as a key resource to teach employability skills.

    A selection of courses taught by the respondents:

    • Business communications
    • Transition
    • Culinary arts
    • Workplace readiness
    • Work-based learning (WBL)
    • Family and consumer sciences (FACS)
    • Engineering
    • Middle school career exploration

    Among the survey results:

    • 91% of respondents believe the Rubin team provides prompt, dependable customer service.
    • 88% of respondents feel Rubin Emerge content is relevant and up-to-date.
    • 85% of respondents would recommend Rubin to colleagues.
    • 73% of respondents think Rubin Emerge improved students’ face-to-face interactions.

    The respondents also shared positive feedback in writing, for example:

    • “Very appealing and user-friendly. We love it. Helping us structure our workplace readiness skills for sure!”
    • “Your support is excellent, and my questions are answered in a timely manner.”
    • “Everything I utilized with Emerge was great to supplement and add to my courses at my school.”

    Want to explore Emerge for yourself? Check out our new, full-color catalog and then request a 30-day free trial.

    90% would recommend to colleagues

  • Rubin Announces National Finalists in First-Ever America’s Next Great Intern Contest

    Rubin Announces National Finalists in First-Ever America’s Next Great Intern Contest

    Virginia Beach, VA (March 10, 2023) – A student will soon be named America’s Next Great Intern. After reviewing nearly 200 submissions from across the country, Rubin has chosen 16 finalists who showcase top-tier communication skills essential in an internship.

    Prizes include a stipend for professional clothing, a professional headshot, a paid virtual internship, a cash bonus for the teacher of the winning student and more.

    Rubin, the leader in online curriculum for employability and workplace readiness skills, hosts the competition.

    Demand for intern and job applicants with “soft skills” is a top priority across all industry sectors. According to a 2022 survey of employers by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), 76% of respondents want to hire young people who can work on a team, 73% want ones with strong written communication skills and 58% seek new hires who can speak well.

    The submission period for the America’s Next Great Intern contest ran throughout February 2023, which is National Career and Technical Education (CTE) Month. All middle school, high school and post-secondary CTE students were eligible.

    The instructions were drawn from Rubin’s Emerge curriculum, a broad library of online exercises for employability skills like email/phone etiquette, job interview prep, LinkedIn communication and more. Rubin provides Emerge to CTE programs nationwide.

    A panel of judges (Rubin team members, industry professionals and staff from the Association for Career and Technical Education) assessed the students across five areas.

    1. Greeting: Video recording of the student engaging in a professional handshake
    2. Phone Skills: Video recording of the student leaving a mock voicemail and answering the phone at a place of business
    3. Team Communication: Email in which the student updates a teacher or employer on the status of classwork or a project at an internship/job
    4. Resiliency & Determination: Written example of a time in which the student demonstrated resiliency in the face of a challenge on a class/club project, volunteer opportunity or internship task
    5. Research & Critical Thinking: Questions the student prepares to better explore a company where the student would like to intern

    Rubin encourages the public to vote here on the national finalists through April 7, 2023. The Rubin team will announce 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners on April 12, 2023.

    “Employers often lament that students don’t possess the ‘soft skills’ necessary to engage in an office setting or on the job site,” says Danny Rubin, founder of Rubin. “We hope the contest shows that, yes, there are motivated young people coast to coast who will add value to any business or organization.”

    2023 America’s Next Great Intern National Finalists

    Bezawit Abate, 10th Grade

    Potomac Senior High School

    Prince William County Schools

    Dumfries, VA

    Teacher: Ms. Eula Tillar

     

    Tucker Brookman, 12th Grade

    Lord Botetourt High School

    Botetourt County Public Schools

    Daleville, VA

    Teacher: Ms. Katrina Kish

     

    Ivory Carney, 12th Grade

    Allen Village School

    Kansas City, Missouri

    Teacher: Dr. Terri Redden

     

    Sameer Eppanapally, 12th grade

    Stockdale High School

    Kern High School District

    Bakersfield, California

    Teacher: Mr. Brian Devitt

     

    Violet Gude, 10th Grade

    Las Vegas Academy of the Arts

    Clark County School District

    Las Vegas, Nevada

    Teacher: Ms. Elizabeth Strehl

     

    Lucy Hansen, 11th Grade

    Boone High School

    Boone Community School District

    Boone, Iowa

    Teachers: Ms. Lindsey Hyman and Ms. Amy Bossard

     

    Madison Hansen, 12th Grade

    Littleton Health Sciences

    Littleton Public Schools

    Littleton, Colorado

    Teacher: Ms. Heidi Mahn

     

    Laurengail Lorenz, 12th Grade

    Elk River Senior High School

    Independent School District 728

    Elk River, Minnesota

    Teacher: Mr. Matt Stueber

     

    Bryleena Patterson, 12th Grade

    Central High School

    Phenix City Schools

    Phenix City, Alabama

    Teacher: Mrs. Valerie Thornton

     

    Rosemary Ruan, 10th Grade

    Northwest Guilford High School

    Guilford County Schools

    Greensboro, North Carolina

    Teacher: Mrs. Chandra James

     

    Clara Sanchez-Lapitan, 12th Grade

    Advanced Technology Center

    Virginia Beach City Public Schools

    Virginia Beach, Virginia

    Teacher: Ms. Anna-Lisa Wanack

     

    Yug Sarin, 9th Grade

    Fuquay-Varina High School IT Academy

    Wake County Public School System

    Cary, North Carolina

    Career Academy Coordinator: Ms. Rhonda Lusher

     

    Alondra Sanjurjo-Mercado, 11th Grade

    Colonial Heights High School

    Colonial Heights Public Schools

    Colonial Heights, Virginia

    Teacher: Ms. Susannah Oates

     

    Mickala Tenn, 12th Grade

    Putnam City North High School

    Putnam City Schools

    Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

    Teacher: Ms. Amanda Davis

     

    Ana Vaeao, 11th Grade

    Oceanside High School

    Oceanside Unified School District

    Oceanside, California

    Teacher: Ms. Kim Roy

     

    For more information or to set up an interview, please contact Danny Rubin at danny@rubineducation.com.

    About Rubin:

    Rubin is the leader in online instruction for employability and work readiness skills. The company, based in Virginia Beach, Virginia, provides Emerge, a digital curriculum that teaches effective writing and speaking skills, to thousands of students in middle school, high school and higher education. Rubin also has a soft-skill notification tool for email writing called Propel.

    Founded in 2017 by Danny Rubin, a former CBS television news reporter and consultant to NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Rubin teaches students nationwide critical lessons for email/phone etiquette, networking, team communication, leadership communication and more. Our motto: “Write well, open doors!”

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    Get your votes in now!

  • Only Two Weeks Left to Submit to Rubin’s “Great Intern” Contest

    Only Two Weeks Left to Submit to Rubin’s “Great Intern” Contest

    With two weeks remaining in the first-ever America’s Next Great Intern contest, the Rubin team continues to review stellar submissions from CTE students around the country.

    Now through March 3, 2023, students are encouraged to showcase their employability skills in the fun, free competition.

    Educators can register their class or school here. A panel of judges (Rubin team members, industry professionals and staff from the Association for Career and Technical Education) will assess the students across five areas.

    1. Greeting: Video recording of the student engaging in a professional handshake
    2. Phone Skills: Video recording of the student leaving a mock voicemail and answering the phone at a place of business
    3. Team Communication: Email in which the student updates a teacher or employer on the status of classwork or a project at an internship/job
    4. Resiliency & Determination: Written example of a time in which the student demonstrated resiliency in the face of a challenge on a class/club project, volunteer opportunity or task at an internship
    5. Research & Critical Thinking: Questions the student prepares to better explore a company where the student would like to intern

    The instructions are drawn from Rubin’s Emerge curriculum, a broad library of online exercises for employability skills like email/phone etiquette, job interview prep, LinkedIn communication and more. Rubin provides Emerge to CTE programs nationwide.

    Questions! Email support@rubineducation.com

    The clock is ticking — submit today!

    Clock is ticking!