PATH
THE PROGRAM FOR ACADEMICALLY
TALENTED AT HOPE
Lisa Frissora-Director
Topics of Discussion
Types of Gifted Students
Talent Search Concept
What is acceleration?
Why take an out of grade level test like the
ACT or SAT?
Why is it beneficial to take accelerated
classes?
PATH Program
Distinction
Gifted: having extraordinary intellectual
ability and creativity
Talented: having exceptional skills and
ability in a specific area such as art, music,
science, and language
Intellectually gifted
Students who are exceptional learners.
Creatively Gifted or Talented
These students display their unique
abilities within the framework of the visual
or performing arts.
Invisible gifted
Members of diverse cultural populations
Students with disabilities, especially learning,
behavior or psychomotor disabilities
Females-lower math and diminished abilities as
adolescence progresses
Academically Talented
Students who are academically advanced
grade levels beyond their peers.
Types of programs
Resource programs
Self-contained
Inclusion
How do you identify students who
are gifted and talented?
Topic One
Talent Search
In the early seventies, Dr. Julian Stanley of John Hopkins
University used the SAT-The Scholastic Aptitude Test to
identify junior high students who had exceptional
mathematical or verbal reasoning ability.
The study concluded that if students score at the level of
high school juniors or seniors they would benefit from
accelerated, challenging course work.
Today over 150,000 3rd-9th graders from across the
United States participate annually through four
university-based centers.
Topic Two
What is acceleration?
Acceleration allows the student to progress at a
faster rate through a program while at a younger
age than usual.
Types of acceleration can range from entering
Kindergarten early to telescoping curriculum.
There are over 18 types of acceleration.
Acceleration also provides students with
curriculum that can be matched more to their
social and emotional state.
Topic Three
Why take an out of grade level test like the
Explore, ACT or SAT
“Above-level” testing provides a more precise
assessment of a bright child’s potential in
reading, math and science.
This information provides schools and families
with identification and assessment tools. This
will help in making important decisions of finding
what is the “right fit” for the student.
Topic Four
Why is it beneficial to take accelerated
classes?
Taking courses at an earlier grade level or in a
shorter amount of time, allows the student the
opportunity to work at a pace that is appropriate
for the student.
How does a child’s score demonstrate what type
of acceleration is appropriate?
Taking accelerated courses allows the students
to take courses in high school that he/she would
not normally reach.
PATH
Lisa Frissora-PATH Director, since 2004
PATH began in 1986 as a cooperative project
between Hope College and the Ottawa Area
Intermediate School District.
In the last five years, PATH’s enrollment has
grown from 65 students to over 180 students
from over 20 school districts.
PATH-Program For Academically Talented at
Hope College
The PATH program offers accelerated classes in
Composition and Literature, Pre-Algebra,
Algebra I/II, Geometry, Advanced Mathematics
(Pre-Calculus) and Biology.
PATH courses meet once a week at Hope
College and work at their home school the other
four days of the school week.
PATH is an opportunity for students to interact
with peers that share their passion for learning
and those that are seeking a challenge.
School Year Details
PATH classes meet from the first Tuesday/Thursday after
Labor Day until the last week in May. PATH classes
follow the school district calendars as much as possible.
PATH classes are cancelled during the week of
Thanksgiving, two weeks at Christmas, Spring Break
and Tulip Time.
If there are two or more snow days, it will be determined
if a PATH class will be made up at the end of the year.
PATH Transportation
PATH meets once a week on Tuesday or Thursday
afternoons from 1:00-3:30 on Hope’s campus.
Students arrive by parent or school transportation.
Students can be monitored until 3:45 in a PATH study
hall if a parent can not arrive promptly at 3:30.
PATH attempts to house all students in one or two
buildings located on campus. All students enter the
campus through Van Zoeren Hall located on 10th street.
Afternoon dismissal is the same.
Financial Information
PATH tuition is paid either by the student’s district or the
family depending on whether they attend public school,
private school or are home-schooled. Each district has a
separate policy on tuition and transportation.
PATH tuition bills are sent out at the end of October.
Arrangements may be made with Hope College
Accounting to spread out the payments during the school
year.
If a student drops a class in the first six weeks, a
prorated fee is charged for that student.
After six weeks, the class is non-refundable.
Things to Consider…
Encourage your students to
participate in activities and
courses that motivate them
and provide them joy.
Work with your district to find
an academic plan that is the
“right fit” for your child.