School for gifted students offers June 15 tour

Children and their parents who are considering enrollment in Arizona State University’s Gary K. Herberger Young Scholars Academy can tour the school and receive information from its executive director on Wednesday, June 15, at 3:00 p.m.

The Young Scholars Academy is located on ASU’s West campus at 4701 W. Thunderbird Road in Phoenix. When it welcomes its inaugural seventh-grade class this August, it will become Arizona’s first university-based school specifically designed to meet the unique educational, social and emotional needs of gifted young adolescents.

Educational programming at the academy will move at a rapid pace. The first year covers the equivalent of seventh and eighth grades; the second year covers ninth and tenth grade curricula; and the third year is the equivalent of the junior and senior years of high school. Students will take appropriate Advanced Placement assessments.

During the fourth and fifth years of the program, students will engage in university work through ASU’s New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences. New College’s curriculum for university freshmen and sophomores emphasizes the integration of knowledge within and across disciplinary boundaries, helping students discover how forms of knowledge interrelate to produce meaningful solutions to today’s challenges.

When they complete the Young Scholars Academy curriculum, at the conclusion of what would be their junior year of high school in a traditional setting, students will have earned as many as 45 ASU credits and will be prepared to apply to continue their studies in any degree program on any ASU campus. They also may wish to augment their studies through Barrett, The Honors College, which is active on all campuses.

The academy’s rapid pace is exactly what gifted youngsters need to be challenged and avoid experiencing boredom, depression and loneliness, according to Kimberly Lansdowne, the academy’s executive director. Lansdowne previously served as director of gifted education for the Scottsdale Unified School District. She possesses experience as a classroom teacher, gifted teacher, gifted program director and university professor. Lansdowne was a longtime board member of the Arizona Association for the Gifted and Talented (AAGT) and is now an active member of the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) Diversity and Equity Committee.

The cost of ASU tuition, fees and books is covered through the Young Scholars Academy’s $7,500 annual tuition cost. Scholarships are available for students whose families demonstrate financial need.

R.S.V.P.s are not required for the June 15 tour. For more information about the Gary K. Herberger Young Scholars Academy, visit http://herbergeracademy.asu.edu/, email herbergeracademy@asu.edu, or call (602) 543-8274.