Williston Middle School AIG Website:
AIG Specialist
matthew.sullivan@nhcs.net
Ext 76588
https://www.smore.com/e0b2g-williston-middle-aig-december-news (December News)
Embedded Files
Academically Gifted teacher Bio and helpful startup information:
https://www.smore.com/e0b2g-williston-aig-news OCTOBER NEWS
Snapshot Bio: My name is Matthew Sullivan and I am a second year teacher at Williston Middle. First Year as AIG Specialist. Graduate from Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA. Have been in Education for over 15 years. We have three children and 2 dogs named Pippa and Benny. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Go Pittsburgh Steelers, Pirates, and Pens.
Snapshot Bio: My name is Matthew Sullivan and I am a second year teacher at Williston Middle. First Year as AIG Specialist. Graduate from Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA. Have been in Education for over 15 years. We have three children and 2 dogs named Pippa and Benny. Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Go Pittsburgh Steelers, Pirates, and Pens.
***NEW INFO***
New Hanover County Schools’ (NHCS) Gifted Advisory Council (GAC) is currently seeking parent, teacher and community member nominees to serve on the Council.
The purpose of GAC is to monitor the timely and accurate implementation of all components of the Academically or Intellectually Gifted (AIG) program, as well as advocate, communicate and liaise with businesses and the community at large with respect to AIG. The Council also advises and makes recommendations to the New Hanover County Board of Education on AIG matters.
All nominations should be sent to GAC Secretary Karma Maples at karma.maples@nhcs.net no later than Friday, September 9, 2022. Current Council members will vote on new member nominees and then the Council as a whole will be proposed to the NHC Board of Education for approval.
For more information, contact Maureen Meehan, NHCS AIG Supervisor , at maureen.meehan@nhcs.net.
New Hanover County Schools AIG Program
Williston Middle School
Frequently Asked Questions
My child was identified at a North Carolina Public Elementary School. Will the identification carry over?
Yes. Once a student is identified at a North Carolina Public School, the identification remains in PowerSchool until the end of the student’s high school career. However, if different criteria were used to identify the student, the student would remain identified as gifted, but the level of service may change.
My child was identified at a previous school, out of state. Will the identification carry over?
We do not believe that students should be “de-gifted.” The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction requires that students identified as Academically and/or Intellectually Gifted go through an identification process. The standards used to identify students in other states, however, must match those in North Carolina. The AIG Match Team will meet to determine if more testing is necessary or if a change in the level of service provided to the student is necessary, based on existing data.
How will middle school AIG be different from elementary school AIG?
Given the large number of AIG students, pull out instruction is not always feasible. All content area teachers that instruct AIG students have received, or are going through the process of receiving New Hanover County’s AIG Credentials. Williston gifted education specialist serves as a resource to classroom teachers, meets with teachers to plan instruction and create lessons/units that are designed to meet the needs of our gifted population, team-teaches, and conducts push-in instruction for AIG classes. We will have projects that will be pull-out for Enrichment this year as well.
What extracurricular activities are offered at Williston that are beneficial to AIG students?
Any and all after school activities are beneficial to AIG students. Part of our goal is to help students discover new interests and develop a passion for hobbies outside of the classroom. Aside from sports, Williston offers MathCounts, Science Olympiad, STAE, Student Equity Team, Look on the Williston Website under the Learning tab in Student Resources for updates. Our first AIG Project will be a news team! More news to come..
Are all students in an AIG class identified?
No. NC Law requires that all students that score a Level 5 on the Math EOG be placed in the highest level math class offered for their grade level. While a Level 5 does place students into an AIG math class, it does not equate to AIG identification, and does not guarantee placement in an AIG cluster in the future. In some cases, students are placed in an AIG class to meet other social/academic needs per administration’s decision.
My child is only identified in one area: Math, Reading, Intellectual. How are services for each area provided?
All AIG students, whether identified in one or all areas, will receive services in both Math and Reading in 6th and 7th grade at Williston, unless there is a distinct disparity in ability.Because the students travel as a team for their core classes, instruction from each content area teacher will be guided by students’ intellectual ability and academic needs. We have found that most AIG students, regardless of identification area, find success with this model. 8th graders do not travel as a team due to the high school credited classes offered. 8th grade scheduling is more similar to high school.
My child is not identified, but has made all As/Bs. Why can’t they be placed in an AIG class?
While achieving high grades is commendable, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction has a specific process used to identify students as gifted that includes more than grades. If there is a need to place a non-identified student in an AIG class, that is up to the discretion of the administration, not the gifted education specialist.
How is a child nominated for AIG services?
A parent, teacher or other school personnel can nominate a child. A student may also nominate him/herself. If you think your child requires differentiated services, contact the classroom teacher, Gifted Education Specialist, or school principal. After a nomination is made data will be collected on your child to assess his/her needs and if your child is evaluated the results will be explained to you. Nomination forms can be downloaded from your Gifted Specialist's webpage or from the Parent Resource page.
Who makes the decision about which services a student needs?
The AIG Match Team, which is composed of the Gifted Education Specialist, the principal or designee, and various classroom teachers, will review all available data and will determine if differentiation is required and what service the student will access. A copy of the AIG Match Team Record, documenting the team's decision, is provided to parents.
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