Carson City School District accepting nominations for inclusion in GATE

The Carson City School District is accepting nominations for inclusion in the Gifted and Academically Talented Education program for the 2019-20 school year.

While teachers and other school personnel are responsible for nominating students in the second to seventh grades, parents also can request to have their child nominated for the GATE program. Parents are encouraged to contact their child’s teacher to initiate the GATE nomination process. The screening includes teacher observations, academic achievement data and a cognitive assessment.

The district’s GATE program begins in third grade. The district provides GATE Cluster programs in third through fifth grades at all elementary schools and a cluster program in sixth through eighth grades at Eagle Valley Middle School. The district also offers a full immersion GATE program in sixth through eighth grades at Carson Middle School. All GATE students are taught by teachers with the GATE endorsement on their licenses, which includes 12 graduate credits in specialized instruction for GATE students.

“There are nearly 850 GATE students in Carson City this year (2017-18 school year) ranging from grades three to 12,” said Joanna Kaiser, GATE implementation specialist for the Carson City School District. “And they are very representative of our district’s student population.”

If parents would like to have a child considered for the GATE program in Carson City, they’re encouraged to contact their teacher and ask him or her to nominate your child. Parents also will need to complete and sign a Parent Authorization for Eligibility Testing form the child’s teacher will provide.

Once the nomination process has been completed in April, parents will receive written notification of their child’s eligibility in GATE for the 2019-20 school year. For questions about the process, contact Kaiser at 775-283-1591 or jkaiser@carson.k12.nv.us.