MIDDLEBURY -- Northridge Middle School Principal Robby Goodman has been named Middle School Principal of the Year for District 2 -- which comprises eight northern Indiana counties -- by the Indiana Association of School Principals.

Goodman will receive the award Sunday evening in Indianapolis. He is one of 12 district winners, and a statewide winner will be announced at the awards ceremony.

In an interview Tuesday, Goodman talked about the goals he has and the challenges NMS is facing.

What are your biggest goals right now for the school?

Goodman said the two main goals right now are to turn NMS into a "professional learning community" and make sure students are prepared for the International Baccalaureate program, which Northridge High School plans to introduce soon.

He said a professional learning community is a "a very systematic way of doing school."

"What it really is is taking the emphasis off teaching and putting it toward learning," Goodman said.

What is the biggest challenge the school is facing?

A lack of funds and trying to do more with less money is what the entire district, including NMS, is facing right now, Goodman said.

"Right now, most of our cuts and tightening of the belt have happened away from students," he said.

He added that the school could really use more staff, and definitely needs to keep the staff it currently has.

What is the school's biggest strength?

NMS' biggest strength is the school community, Goodman said, and students with a desire to learn and staff with a desire to make sure that happens.

"We have staff that goes above and beyond the call of duty to make sure our students are learning what we expect them to," he said.

What does NMS need to work on?

The school has more work to do on becoming a professional learning community, Goodman said.

"We're still very much in its infancy," he said.

The school just started the effort last year, he said, and experts say it takes five to seven years to instill the frame of mind.

Something else the school is still figuring out is the transition into its building, which used to house Northridge High School, he said.

"We're inhabiting a building that was designed for a high school, and we're making the adjustments slowly to make it feel like a middle school in the truest sense," Goodman said.

How has the school changed since you became principal?

Goodman hasn't been there long, he pointed out -- this is only his third year.

He said the biggest changes have been structure in systems, such as using uniform terminology.

"I think our kids are still great kids, and they were great before I came," Goodman said. "I think our staff is a great staff, and it was great before I came."