Submitted by Kathy Belcher
January 2018 was an exciting landmark month as Jefferson-Somerset assessed and identified kindergarteners and first graders to participate in the Gifted Program. Now 
that students are identified, teachers and students are ready to roll. This is exciting and positive news, as it has been a number of years since Jefferson County Schools have been able to implement a gifted program, so that students with high aptitudes in certain areas can gain specialized enrichment, set achievable goals to be challenged and see measurable improvements at a possibly accelerated pace.
Students who have met the eligibility criteria may participate in the Gifted Program. Each one will have an Educational Plan which includes present levels of performance, priority educational needs, goals and services. Teachers utilize their gifted students’ Educational Plans as an accessible resource to write enrichment activities and accelerated and/or compacted strategies for the gifted students’ learning. Additionally, Educational Plans are available on Virtual Counselor, a helpful database system Jefferson-Somerset uses to streamline educational data and track progress.
Under the new gifted plan, a team looked at multiple criteria, including the use of nonverbal IQ testing and verbal measures from academic performance, as well as social needs and emotional characteristics in order to identify eligible students. With the initial relaunch of Jefferson-Somerset’s gifted program, kindergarten and first grade students arrive at school in typical fashion and go to class as usual. Brenda Wirick then gathers the students from class each Wednesday morning promptly at 8:15 a.m. and returns them around 10 a.m. before lunch.
Wirick provides gifted support in the self-contained classroom for several hours per week. The curriculum includes hands-on integrated STEM lessons revolving around inventions, problem-solving, logic, leadership and creativity. Students also receive social-emotional skill building support focusing on teamwork, communications and other skills. During the week, she visits the general education classrooms several times, providing support for the students and teachers.
Wirick also leads the Dual Enrollment program at the high school level, which has increased by approximately 50 percent this year. There are now 18 students actively participating in college courses, giving them a jump start on their future.
Jefferson-Somerset continues to make strides to serve students in ways that meet their needs and provide tools for success. It is a great time to be a Tiger!
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