Gilbert Public Schools - Junior High Gifted Academy?

Beginning last school year, Gilbert Public Schools assembled a committee composed of teachers, administrators, directors, coordinators and parents to research the viability of opening a Junior High Gifted Academy. This committee was tasked with researching, planning, and preparing information for the implementation of a Junior High Gifted Academy.

The Gifted Academy Committee narrowed its focus to consider :

• Starting small, with 2 classes of gifted 7th graders and 2 classes of gifted 8th graders.
• Housing the Academy in one centralized location.
• Ensuring the 4 core subject teachers are trained in gifted education.
• Setting the Student qualification criteria to include a score of 97+ in one of the three areas of giftedness, or a score of 95+ in two of the three areas of giftedness, or an IQ  score of 128. 

Here is the link to the district's website.

 

The committee will present information to the Governing Board at a Work Study meeting on February 9, 2016.  This information will include the committee's research and proposal.  Board members will have the opportunity to ask questions of the committee concerning their research, proposal, and recommendations. At a subsequent Governing Board meeting, Board members will determine if and when Gilbert Public Schools will open a Gifted Academy.  Both the Work Study and the Governing Board meeting will be available for public viewing either in person at the district office or online. 

Which lecture topics interest you?

We would love to know which topics are of interest to you for future Gilbert Supporters of the Gifted lectures.

Please click on the following link to take a quick survey.  And when we say, quick, it only has one question!  You can also add another topic if we don't have it listed and we can consider that too.

Thanks!

CLICK HERE TO TAKE SURVEY

2016 ASU Barrett Summer Scholars Program

Click HERE for more information

"How to Talk About Giftedness" - Guest Lecture 1/21/16

Join us for our guest lecture to be held on Thursday, January 21st at 7:00 p.m. in the Greenfield Junior High Library (101 S Greenfield Road, Gilbert).

Stephanie Newitt, President of Gilbert Supporters of the Gifted, will be speaking to us about "How to talk about Giftedness: Bringing Giftedness out into the Daylight."

Come to this discussion to receive ideas on how to bring the topic of giftedness out of the dark crevices and into the daylight...or in other words, how to talk about that elephant in the room.   Please spread the word to other parents and educators.

NAGC Parent Day - November 12-15, 2015

Education Movie Screening - Monday, Nov. 9th

You are invited to attend a special screening of the award winning documentary, Most Likely To Succeed, in the Piper Theater at the Mesa Arts Center in Mesa at 7 PM on Monday, November 9th. There is no cost to attend and this is not a fundraiser for any cause.  

This non-partisan documentary takes a powerful look at our K-12 education system and focuses largely on learning options and student engagement.  The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and has since shown at numerous film festivals including the Tribeca Film Festival and was directed by Greg Whiteley, who also directed the MITT documentary.

The executive producer of the film, Ted Dintersmith, will be in attendance and will lead an always interesting QA/Discussion after the film has concluded.

Please register for the event here:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/special-screening-of-most-likely-to-succeed-tickets-19009704538 

View the film trailer here: http://mltsfilm.org

Please feel free to invite family and friends who you think would be interested in attending but be sure to RSVP soon as seating is limited.

*Please note that this event is not sponsored by Gilbert Supporters of the Gifted.

4th Grader's Letter to Gov. Ducey

Guest post by Sophia & Audrey Tesch -

My daughter Audrey, who is in the Fourth Grade, asked me how to write a letter to the Governor. I told her that when I write a letter to an elected official I tell them my story, how I feel about the issue, and what I would like him/her to do about it. She said, "Ok," and later produced this letter which she mailed to Governor Doug Ducey's office. I am proud of Audrey. She values her education and she is standing up for it. I hope others will stand up for funding education in Arizona as well and give our students the best, so that our students can give us their best. Thanks Audrey!

Thank you Sophia & Audrey for sharing with us!

Dear Reader, 

Do you want to know more about education and gifted education funding in Arizona?  In Gilbert?  Check out our recent blog article:  Gifted Education Funding

If you or your child would like to write your own letter, you may wish to include an invitation to Gov. Ducey and/or your AZ legislative representatives to attend Parent Day of the National Association for Gifted Children's conference, to be held on Saturday, November 14th in Phoenix.  This would be a unique event at which they could hear from professionals in the field about the unique needs of gifted children and help them realize that the philosophy of gifted education - to focus on and support student strengths as well as student struggles - is a philosophy that would benefit every student.

• Contact information for Governor Ducey:  http://azgovernor.gov/governor/form/contact-governor-ducey
• Contact information for your AZ legislative representatives:  http://www.azleg.gov/alisStaticPages/HowToContactMember.asp