Clayton County Schools
Clayton County Public Schools provides gifted services through a variety of models.
At the elementary-school level, the most common model is a pull-out class called SCORE which meets one day each week. Not all schools have a large enough gifted population to assign a full-time gifted teacher. In those cases, a SCORE teacher may be shared among multiple schools.
In middle schools, gifted students are taught in advanced sections of core curriculum classes. In some schools, a gifted team may be able to offer advanced classes in several curriculum areas; in others, advanced classes may be limited to one area of the curriculum.
Gifted high-school students can take advanced classes and / or Advanced Placement (AP) classes.
The CCPS web site presents an extensive list of service models that may be used for gifted students.
Identification of gifted students
Schools conduct an annual talent search for students to be evaluated for gifted services. Referrals for evaluation may come from classroom teachers’ observations, a classroom talent survey, or automatic referral based on standardized test scores. Identified students then go through an assessment process. The CCPS web site explains the evaluation procedure.
Acceleration policy
Subject acceleration, in which a student goes to a higher-grade classroom to study one or more subjects, and whole-grade acceleration (grade skip) are sometimes utilized, but the county does not have a formal written policy for acceleration. Decisions are made by the local school administration, with the approval of the area superintendent.
International Baccalaureate school
Lovejoy High School in Hampton offers the International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme. IB is a well known, rigorous curriculum that culminates in the awarding of an IB diploma. Many colleges will grant sophomore status to incoming students who hold an IB diploma.
Year-round charter school
Elite Scholars Academy in Morrow is a charter school serving grades 6-10. There is no general level instruction here; all classes are taught at the advanced, gifted or AP level. The school operates on a year-round calendar. Interested students must register for a lottery, which opens in February.
Magnet school for science and math
Rex Mill Middle School in Rex offers an advanced curriculum in science and math. Rising 6th graders interested in attending must register for the lottery used to select students.
Magnet school for fine arts
Fine Arts Magnet High School, housed on the Mt. Zion High School campus in Jonesboro, offers study in voice, drama, music, dance and visual arts, with plenty of performance opportunities. Prospective students must apply and complete an audition.
At the county office
CCPS is currently searching for a coordinator of Advanced Learning. Until the position is filled, parents can direct their questions to Kim Blackwood at (678) 817-3101. Gifted Education is part of the Teaching and Learning Department, which is under the supervision of Chief Academic Officer Dr. Diana Carry. She can be reached at (678) 817-3060.
Luvenia Jackson has served as the interim superintendent of CCPS since October 2012.
Elected officials
CCPS is governed by a nine-member board of education. The board posts its meeting schedule online. If you can’t get to the meetings in person, you can watch them on TV24, a local access channel offered on Comcast cable. You can also view videos of past meetings online.
Links on this page were last verified on Oct. 16, 2012
