Gifted Atlanta

Life-long educator Kristy Beam is in the planning stages of creating Georgia Accelerated Career Academy, a public charter school that will allow students in grades 6 to 12 to prepare for careers in healthcare and medicine. On Tuesday, October 22, she’ll host an online informational session, and she’s hoping parents of gifted students will tune in and provide feedback.

Beam, who has worked as a teacher, administrator, and assistant superintendent in the metro Atlanta area, envisions a school where students begin exploring healthcare careers in middle school, work toward certifications as underclassmen, and ultimately earn an associate’s degree while in high school. From there, students could go directly into a healthcare career or embark on further studies in medicine.

The ability to earn an associate’s degree while in high school is available to public school students in Georgia through the Accelerated Career Diploma program, but Beam says it isn’t offered at all schools, and it’s usually suggested only to students who are struggling to stay on track to graduate, not advanced learners. Beam notes that some gifted students become disengaged from typical academic classes, and they might benefit from a program that lets them start pursuing an interest in healthcare and medicine while in high school.

To learn more about the plans for the school, visit https://www.gaaca.net/. To register for the information session, go to the event page.

Located in the downtown Decatur area, Lighthouse Prep is a small, independent school serving grades 2 through 12 that gives students greater autonomy to choose what they learn and at what pace.

Students pick their courses from an online learning platform that school founder Mikala Streeter compares to Coursera. Streeter says it’s ideal for gifted kids, because they can choose a class that matches their interest and mastery level, even if they’re the only child in the school who wants to take that specific class, and even if the school year is already underway.

The school also emphasizes hands-on projects, which likewise match students’ level of expertise and personal interests.

In addition to its full-time program, Lighthouse Prep offers a homeschool hybrid option, where students attend the school one to three days per week.

Midtown International School invites parents and teachers to attend an online presentation about gifted children and how they learn, Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024 at 7 p.m.

The one-hour webinar will cover signs of giftedness, types of gifted learners, and strategies to support gifted children’s intellectual and social growth.

Registration for the webinar is required for all attendees.

Midtown International School is an independent school in northeast Atlanta that caters specifically to gifted children in kindergarten through 12th grade.

This is the time of year when public schools would ordinarily be evaluating children to see if they qualify for gifted services, administering tests that score the students on such characteristics as creativity and motivation. I was curious how metro Atlanta school systems are handling gifted evaluation this year. I had three primary concerns:

1. Many kids didn’t take standardized tests like the Milestones exams last spring, and those standardized tests are often used as a screening tool to identify students who should be evaluated for receiving gifted services.
2. How were the schools administering the tests used for gifted evaluation if kids aren’t attending school in person?
3. Would students already identified as gifted be able to maintain their gifted eligibility if they didn’t take Milestones and similar exams to demonstrate their continued need for gifted services?

I reached out with these questions to the gifted education departments of six metro Atlanta school systems: Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties, plus Atlanta Public Schools.

Ordinarily, when I get information from school officials, I read through it and write a summary. But some of these answers are so complex and detailed, I wanted to share them in full. In contrast, DeKalb’s answers were brief and vague, and I don’t want to guess at their meaning.

Below are the responses I received from Clayton, DeKalb, and Fulton county schools, verbatim. Cobb County and Gwinnett County didn’t reply to two requests. APS responded to say they were waiting on answers from senior leadership, but they haven’t yet sent me any information. If I do hear back from any of these systems, I’ll post an update.

If you have questions about your child’s gifted eligibility, I suggest you reach out to the gifted specialist at your school, and if necessary, to the gifted education department of your school system. (You can find links to the websites of the gifted education departments on each system’s page under the Gifted Ed in Local Schools area of GiftedAtlanta.com.)

Clayton County
My questions are in bold. Their answers are in regular type.
First, is it correct that students who have already qualified for gifted services in a prior school year will not lose their gifted eligibility if they don’t take the usual standardized tests this school year? The gifted students of CCPS will continue with their gifted services whether they took an end of the year summative assessment.  Our continued services are based on the child’s performance, passing gifted classes, and teacher/school input.  Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, gifted services were continued for the 19-20 school year. 

Will they be able to continue uninterrupted with their gifted services, not only through the remainder of the 2020-21 school year, but also in the 2021-22 school year? Yes, we will continue with gifted services for students into the next school year of 21-22.  CCPS works for the benefit of the student and we understand that our present situation is the best we can make it for our students.  We work to make sure that all gifted students receive gifted services and we are continuing our efforts to identify gifted and talented students. 

I’d also like information about how students who are not yet qualified for gifted services need to proceed. I’m thinking here mostly of students in the primary and elementary grades. If they don’t take the in-person standardized tests, will they be able to qualify for gifted evaluation? And, additionally, if they do qualify for evaluation, how will those evaluations be conducted this school year? Yes, CCPS has implemented a talent search this fall.  We have modified our eligibility process to the virtual format since CCPS has remained virtual since March of 2020.  Students are able to take normed referenced tests through an electronic format.  CCPS began testing students again in early November.  Our elementary schools are back to testing and our secondary schools will hopefully begin testing in late February.  The CCPS gifted program wanted to make sure that all teachers were trained for online testing and felt comfortable with the process.  We are very lucky to work with so many fantastic educators who want the best for our children. 

DeKalb County
I am in receipt of your communication.  We appreciate your support of the DeKalb County School District.  As it pertains to gifted identified students, they will continue to receive services without interruption.  Students seeking gifted eligibility will continue to follow the guidelines as established by the GaDOE and DCSD.  Those guidelines can be found in the links below. 
https://www.dekalbschoolsga.org/gifted/

I sent a subsequent email, asking for more detailed answers to my specific questions about screening and testing while children are not attending school in person, and received this response:
Thank you for reaching out to learn of how the district will begin or continue gifted evaluation during virtual and hybrid learning. Principals have received guidance on gifted services, testing, and evaluation for this year.  Please encourage the parents to contact their local principal for more information. 

Fulton County
My questions are in bold. Their answers are in regular type.
First, is it correct that students who have already qualified for gifted services in a prior school year will not lose their gifted eligibility if they don’t take the usual standardized tests this school year? Will they be able to continue uninterrupted with their gifted services, not only through the remainder of the 2020-21 school year, but also in the 2021-22 school year?  Fulton County Schools adheres to State Board Rule 160-4-2-.38 Education Program for Gifted Students.  This indicates that students who have been identified as gifted and receive gifted services shall continue to receive services provided the student demonstrates satisfactory performance in regular and gifted education classes, as described in our local continuation criteria.  Therefore, once identified as gifted in the state of Georgia, students do not need to take any additional assessments to maintain their gifted status.

I’d also like information about how students who are not yet qualified for gifted services need to proceed. I’m thinking here mostly of students in the primary and elementary grades. If they don’t take the in-person standardized tests, will they be able to qualify for gifted evaluation? And, additionally, if they do qualify for evaluation, how will those evaluations be conducted this school year?  Fulton County screens all students for possible referral for gifted testing.  The screening, referral, and identification processes have continued in the 2020-2021 school year for both face-to-face and remote learners. While tests for determining gifted eligibility must be given in a face-to-face setting by a trained administrator, parents of remote learners who have been referred for gifted testing have been given the option to have students attend testing sessions in the school building or delay testing until a future testing cycle.

Coming to the Atlanta area this fall: Sora Schools, a private high school catering to students who want to create their own educational path.

Sora Schools is for self-directed students, especially those with a passion that falls outside the bounds of traditional academics. Examples include computer science, writing or film-making.

At Sora Schools, students complete personal projects that utilize their passion and incorporate other academic elements, keeping them engaged while ensuring they’re exposed to a broad education.

School is mostly conducted online, with students meeting in person once a week in the Dunwoody area.

Spaces are available for the 2019-2020 school year.