The Davison Academy of Nevada: A Reno Public School for Gifted Students

The Davidson Academy of Nevada opened its door in the fall of 2006. The Davidson Academy of Nevada is the first public school in the United States to offer an education to exceptionally and profoundly gifted students. Designed for students of middle school and high school ability, the Davidson Academy of Nevada requires-at a minimum-that entering students score a 145 or higher in the Stanford-Binet IQ test. In other words, all students entering the Davidson Academy of Nevada are exceptionally and profoundly gifted students.

Exceptional giftedness is a diagnostic term; it means, roughly, that anywhere from 1 in 100,000 to 1 in 1 million persons scores in the "exceptional" range on IQ tests. Profound giftedness is fare more rare; 1 in 1 million to 1 in 10 million. By targeting these exceptionally and profoundly gifted students, the Davidson Academy of Nevada, partnered with the University of Nevada at Reno, is creating a unique school that meets the needs of an underserved population in terms of educational resources.

Most public and private school curriculums are designed to "teach to the middle." Students who fall below the "middle" are mandated, by federal law, to receive extra instruction and adapted lessons as needed. Individual Education Plans are created for students who are below the norm, to help create individual learning programs to meet their difference in education. On the other hand, there is no federal law protecting the rights of gifted students to receive individual instruction, modified learning plans, or to meet academic needs above and beyond chronological age. In other words, although a profoundly gifted student may be four, five, or six standard deviations from the norm, they receive no protection under the law to receive a modified education, the way that a student who is one, two, three, or more standard deviations from the norm below the norm receives.

The Davidson Academy of Nevada seeks to change this, by offering gifted students a school where learning is not tracked by age, but grouped by ability. Students can finish high school at their own pace-even if this means being finished at age ten. The University of Nevada at Reno provides the Davidson Academy with a place for these students to continue their education. Students who are ready academically to advance to college can take middle and high school courses at the Davidson Academy, but walk over to college courses at the University (which houses the school) as needed. Parents must pay tuition for these courses, which is currently less than $350 for a three-credit course.

This unique school is the first of its kind, but not the last, as the Davidson Institute seeks to expand education opportunities for exceptionally and profoundly gifted students.