An accelerated education program for gifted middle school students will open at ASU’s West campus this fall semester.
The Gary K. Herberger Young Scholars Academy will begin its first year on August 15.
“We’re really excited about [the school],” said Kim Lansdowne, the executive director of the academy. “My hope is we can be part of the ASU community.”
Lansdowne said the school will teach a faster-paced integrated curriculum that combines all units of study, such as math, science and reading into one unit.
The academy is also technology-based. Each classroom has a SMART Board and each student will be provided with a laptop and iPad.
Lansdowne said because the students move at a faster pace, the need for textbooks is not necessary.
Gary and Jeanne Herberger helped fund the academy because of their strong interest in working with highly gifted students, Lansdowne said. Funding also comes from ASU President Michael Crow’s office.
The academy allows for gifted students to take seventh and eighth grade level courses in their first year as 12-year-olds and continue the next two years with ninth through 12th grade.
The last two years of the students’ education at the academy will be spent in university-level classes. Overall the students will be at the academy for five years.
Once they complete their education at the academy, the students can continue on through Barrett, The Honors College at ASU or transfer to another school of their choice.
Students will earn college credits through the academy, and by the time students finish, they can have up to 45 college credits, Lansdowne said.
The tuition per student is $7,500 a year, which covers tuition, laptop and iPad costs. There are also scholarships available, she said.
She said the academy will have core discipline classes Monday through Thursday morning and exploratory classes in the afternoon.
Exploratory classes include physical education, foreign language and music.
On Fridays, ASU faculty and students will be brought in to work with the students.
The school will also have clubs and competitions Friday afternoons, where students can compete in robotics and academic decathlons, Lansdowne said.
Kimberly Elms, the curriculum and technical director of the academy, said, “The curriculum is content-based, it’s not something that’s canned.”
She said the educational topics are from core curriculum standards. Elms’ job was to find these topics and build a framework that would hold them.
“The plan is that we’ll take the kids through what we’re calling a learning episode,” Elms said. “We’re going to bundle the topics and content together.”
The academy will teach students by allowing them to build live simulations and use digital simulations that can help them manipulate facts and events, Elms said.
Another goal of the school is to allow students from the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College at ASU to experience working with gifted students, said Mari Koerner, dean of the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College.
“This is an important initiative,” Koerner said.
She said it gives students from both schools the opportunity to learn from and contribute to one another.
The academy currently has two teachers that have backgrounds in working with gifted students, and the hope is to have 20 students enrolled in the fall, Lansdowne said.
She said the academy will be looking to employ experienced ASU students to come in and work with the students.
Once at capacity, the academy will provide education to 200 students, Lansdowne said.
Reach the reporter at sophia.charchuk@asu.edu
