The Liberal Arts Academy Information Night was Thursday, September 11th at 6pm in the Henry Clay Lassiter Theater. 

Liberal Arts Academy Information Night Presentation

Students interested in attending a gifted and talented high school program will need to complete any necessary testing or auditions THIS FALL. If your student is interested in a GT high school program (Liberal Arts Academy or MSTC), please complete the District Gifted Programs Interest Form by September 26th. Current GTAP students will not need any additional testing for the Academy and do not need to complete the form. Completion of the form allows the district to assess if students qualify for placement testing, identify which tests may be necessary, and allows communication between GT programs and parents throughout the school year. The testing window runs from October 6 - November 21, 2025.

The district application window for special programs has not yet been announced. 

 Three test scores in the 9th stanine (96th percentile or higher) are necessary for entrance to the Liberal Arts Academy. All applicants must take the tests as part of the application process unless they have already been identified as gifted in an area by FCPS or can supply the required test scores from a current school. Private testing is not accepted. Students must reside in Fayette County to be eligible for the program.

• Nationally normed general intellectual test (Cognitive Abilities Test)

• Nationally normed math test (IOWA math)

• Nationally normed reading test (IOWA reading)

Who Can Apply?

Any 8th grade or 9th grade student residing in Fayette County may apply for the gifted program. Students must be identified as gifted in the areas of math, language arts and general intelligence through placement tests or have a previous identification in these areas completed by FCPS. Sophomores are admitted on a space available basis. 

Juniors and seniors are not admitted to the program. 

Middle school students in the gifted and talented accelerated program (GTAP) at Winburn Middle and Tates Creek Middle are eligible to continue on to the Liberal Arts Academy. However, parents must apply during the application window and accept their placement offer via SchoolMint. This is a change from previous years. 

Timeline for Placement Testing & Applications

August 15 - September 26, 2025 - Deadline for parents to complete the District Gifted Programs Interest Form to indicate interest in a high school GT program (Liberal Arts Academy or MSTC).

The Gifted Committee will review available MAP data in reading and math for FCPS students whose parents complete the interest form. All FCPS applicants with the qualifying scores (89th percentile or higher) in MAP reading AND MAP math will be contacted via email with testing information for the Liberal Arts Academy. All applicants that do not have qualifying scores will be notified via email that they do not qualify to continue on with the gifted identification process.

The Gifted Committee will also review all IOWA reading and math scores and CogAT scores, if available, to reduce the amount of retesting required for students.  Any student already identified as gifted in reading, math or general intelligence by FCPS will not need to retest in that area. Students originally identified outside the county, who cannot produce test scores to accompany the identification, may be required to retest.

All private school applicants will be tested for placement in the program unless they are able to provide qualifying IOWA math and reading scores, as well as CogAT or OLSAT scores, from their schools. Test scores for the IOWA reading and math and the CogAT or OLSAT may be submitted from 6th, 7th or 8th grade.

October 6 - November 21, 2025 - Students in an FCPS middle school who are qualified for placement testing will have an opportunity to test at their middle school. Parents will be emailed the testing information in advance. Private school applicants will also test during this window at an FCPS school. 

December 19, 2025 - Families will be notified of the placement test results. 

TBA - District Special Programs Application Window