In West St. Paul-Mendota Heights-Eagan Schools, the Gifted and Talented (GT) Program begins in grade 3 and seeks to nurture the exceptional abilities of students by providing ongoing opportunities for enrichment and acceleration. As a student in the GT program, your child will:

• Be grouped with their academic peers within the regular classroom
• Participate in curriculum extension projects based on interest and/or academic strengths (opportunities vary each year)
• Work with the Gifted and Talented/Enrichment Specialist
• Have enrichment opportunities before, during or after school

Each elementary and middle school has a gifted education teacher who works with students and collaborates with classroom teachers to provide appropriate challenge and differentiation for students.
For the 2018-2019 school year, Heritage E-STEM Magnet Middle School and Friendly Hills Middle School Gifted and Talented service models are specific to their building.
In high school, students have access to a variety of rigorous coursework through classes such as Advanced Placement (AP), College in the Schools (CIS), Project Lead the Way and beyond. School counselors are available to help with post-secondary planning and support students through the Naviance program, which allows them to develop a personalized portfolio of their work and research colleges and careers. A guide to preparing gifted and talented high school students for graduation has been developed for families: English | Spanish

For additional enrichment, students in the GT Program participate in co-curricular activities such as:

National Spelling Bee	National Geographic Bee	Odyssey of the Mind	Continental Math League	Young Authors' Conference