PEAK winner meets needs of all gifted students

By Madelynn Coldiron

In Pulaski County Schools, gifted students might be nurtured with some extra material in their regular classrooms. Or they might be dancing a Virginia Reel. Or playing a harp. Or dissecting animals for comparative anatomy reports.

The district ensures no academic or creative gift is overlooked, involving its teachers, parents and community members in the effort. This thorough approach to gifted and talented education won the district KSBA's most recent PEAK (Public Education Achieves in Kentucky) Award.

The Pulaski County Gifted and Talented Program "really is remarkable," said Dr. Julia Roberts, director of the Center for Gifted Studies at Western Kentucky University. Roberts has spotlighted the district's program in workshops and seminars. The state has required districts to serve students who are gifted in areas besides academics for more than a decade, but Pulaski County is "doing it in a more wholehearted way than many districts are," she said.

Her comments were echoed by PEAK judge Jeanie Schaffter, a member of the Union County school board and KSBA board who said, "It's great to see a program that benefits the students who are talented but not necessarily the highest academically. We have a lot of children who fall into that category."

Pulaski County's academically gifted students are served in the classroom by their regular teachers who give them instruction and learning activities to meet their needs, said Gifted Education Director Janice Fraley. Students gifted in other areas that can't be regularly addressed in the classroom - such as visual and performing arts, dance, leadership and creativity - get their dose of stimulation in Exploring Gifts and Talents (EGAT) days.

These days are a centerpiece of the district's program. For an entire day each semester, gifted and talented students in those non-academic areas at elementary, middle and high school levels gather by grade level for performances by professional artists and workshops. The events also involve other teachers and parent volunteers.

During a typical EGAT day, students spend the morning in a general session followed by workshops on subjects ranging from jewelry design and creative writing to leadership and dance. In the afternoon, they attend a paid professional performance arranged through the Kentucky Arts Council.

Since the program began two years ago, interest in the Exploring Gifts and Talents days has spread. Initially, the gifted staff struggled to find workshop presenters, Fraley said. Now, the program gets calls from artists and community members who have heard about the event and want to offer their services.

"They have done some good public relations work, they have tried to work across the community," WKU's Roberts said. "They have worked to see that others can value what they're doing."

And while the activities are fun for the students, there is a fair amount of education going on.

"We list the core content elements in each site and ask presenters in advance to keep those in mind," Fraley said.

Beyond EGAT days

The emotional and social needs of all gifted students are met in sessions led by a psychologist or gifted education specialist. They talk about topics such as underachievement, depression, perfectionism and responsibility. As required by the state, each student also receives an individual service plan.

Pulaski County's gifted and talented students benefit from other activities, including pull-out seminars. Sharon Cherry, the parent of four gifted students ranging from first grade to ninth grade, praised the extra activities, such as a visit to a local high school's Raptor Rehabilitation Program, comparative anatomy lessons and space program simulations.

"My son especially enjoyed building a fully functional 'Hovercraft' vehicle for transport in this extraterrestrial environment," she said. "The students designed, created and tested this craft under the watchful eyes of the GT instructor. They then took their projects to various elementary schools for demonstrations."

The program involves parents of gifted students as volunteers, conducts parent information sessions and notifies them of enrichment opportunities outside the schools. Fraley said most recently, she and her staff have developed an enrichment guide for parents that lists activities locally and statewide for gifted students.

School board support

The Pulaski County school board and Superintendent Tim Eaton two years ago decided to beef up the gifted program and gave it more than lip service. The board approved positions for a district coordinator and six specialists to serve gifted children. The district kicks in the lion's share of funding for the program - $205,800 of its $279,000 budget.

"Even though budget cuts have hit us, they kept true to that commitment and it's resulted in something very good," Eaton said.

The board has also approved policies that allow gifted middle school students to get credit for taking high school classes, and for high school students to get credit for college classes.

Besides supporting the gifted education staff, the budget provides training to regular classroom teachers to identify and better serve gifted students with instruction and learning activities to meet their needs.

Gifted specialist Lynn Ashbrook said the strong gifted program also has had an academic impact.

"If one wanted to measure the academic impact of properly serving this student population, the recent KCCT and CTBS data would definitely show how a small segment of students contributes to the success of many of our schools' overall accountability index," she said. "Beyond that, these students are fulfilling the district's ultimate mission by exiting high school with lofty goals to continue their pursuits in higher education and to become lifelong learners and productive citizens."

The deadline for submitting an entry in the next round of PEAK nominations is Sept. 26. For more information about the program, visit http://www.ksba.org/PEAKAward.htm

PHOTO: Greg Jowaisas of Covington leads elementary-level gifted and talented students in a "Swing and Sing" session at an April 3 Exploring Gifts and Talents day. The session at Pulaski Elementary School taught students a contra dance, Appalachian Squares and a Virginia Reel.

© 2004 Kentucky School Boards Association.

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