Academic Rigor Initiatives

Hall Teacher Receives National Honor
Neusa

The National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) has announced that Ms. Neusa Wendt of Lyman Hall Elementary School in Hall County, Georgia, has been selected as a Javits-Frasier Teacher Scholar.  Comprised of 14 outstanding educators from Title I schools across the country, the group will attend a special strand of sessions at the NAGC Annual Convention and receive a travel stipend through generous support made possible by the Javits-Frasier Teacher Scholarship Fund for Diverse Talent Development.  The teacher training program honors Mary Frasier, Ph.D., the late and beloved past president of the association who led the way in identifying underserved gifted children.

 Dr. Frasier’s pioneering work in the state of Georgia increased by three-fold the number of African American and quadrupled the number of Hispanic children in gifted/talented programs.  She later consulted across the U.S. and became legendary in the field of gifted on the topic of underserved children. Earlier this year, Ms. Wendt was honored by the Georgia Association for Gifted Children (GAGC) when was named the 2009 winner of the Mary Frasier Equity & Excellence Award.  In order to take expertise and tools back to their schools, these scholars will be trained using the proven tools that Mary Frasier developed and inspired during her career.  A rigorous four-day training program has been designed as part of NAGC's 56th annual convention in St. Louis, MO, where all of the experts in the field will gather November 5th – 8th. The scholars were selected from numerous applicants across the country. Fourteen were selected from a nation-wide pool.

The national scholarships include a two-year membership to the NAGC, convention registration, four days of training at convention as well as a travel stipend. Donna Ford, Ph.D., of Vanderbilt University and former chair of the NAGC Diversity Committee is confident of the purpose and success of this project.  A lifelong friend and colleague of Frasier, she said “I cannot thank the donors enough for making this dream a reality.  There is no more fitting extension of Mary’s legacy than to dispatch 14 newfound voices for culturally and economically diverse students who are struggling to be recognized for their potential. This is a program that I am certain has a great future.”  For more than three decades, NAGC members have addressed the issue of underrepresentation of culturally and economically diverse students.  The Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act was passed by Congress in 1988 in memory of the late senator. The program has funded grants to focus on giftedness in disadvantaged youth.  Much of the research contained in the Frasier methodology has its origins in this research.  So, simultaneously, Senator Javits’ lifelong passion for civil rights is truly commemorated in this program.

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International Baccalaureate Programme

Johnson High School, North Hall High School and West Hall High School are proud to be authorized International Baccalaureate (IB) World Schools. These schools offer the IB Diploma Programme (DP). IB schools share a common philosophy—a commitment to high quality, challenging, and international education that we believe is important for our students. While IB DP courses are designated for high-achieving students in the 11th and 12th grades, appropriate course selections in the 8th, 9th, and 10th grades are essential for students to be prepared for the rigor in IB courses.

Interested underclassmen are encouraged to apply to the IB DP. Please visit your designated school’s IB website to learn more about the program and to download an IB application. Please feel free to contact the IB coordinator with any questions you may have. Students who attend (or will attend) Chestatee High School, East Hall High School or Flowery Branch High School and would like to participate in the IB Diploma Programme, may apply to the program at Johnson High School, Hall County’s IB Diploma Programme school of choice. Please see pg. 49 of the Hall County IB Handbook (linked at left) and contact Dr. Sandra Edwards (sandra.edwards@hallco.org) and/or Ms. Amanda Griffin (amanda.griffin@hallco.org) for more information.

Download IB Handbook Here


Hall County IB Coordinator
Dr. Sandra Edwards (sandra.edwards@hallco.org)

Johnson HS IB Coordinator
Ms. Amanda Griffin (amanda.griffin@hallco.org)
JHS IB Website
JHS IB Newsletter Dec. 2008

North Hall HS IB Coordinator
Mrs. Anita Cox (anita.cox@hallco.org)
NHHS IB Website

West Hall HS IB Coordinator
Mrs. Laurie Ecke (laurie.ecke@hallco.org)
WHHS IB Website
WHHS IB Newsletter Jan. 2009
WHHS IB Newsletter March 2009

 

MISSION

“Character, Competency, Rigor . . . for All” – this is the mission of Hall County Schools. Indeed we believe that ALL students have a right to educational experiences that challenge their individual development whether it is currently below, at, or beyond the level of their age peers. In accordance with this philosophy, Hall County provides a variety of rigorous educational programs that recognize and make provisions for the special needs of gifted and talented learners. Further, we believe that exemplary gifted education programs are not only a means of meeting the needs of students who are already achieving at advanced levels, but they can also serve as catalysts for a number of school improvement activities that improve performance of many students. With modifications in content and pacing, with attention to students’ strengths and interests, these strategies can be employed with a wide range of achievement levels to make classroom instruction more engaging and relevant. It is our mission to take a proficiency view of all students, an important first step in raising expectations for student achievement, and then to provide curriculum that maximizes the talent of each student.