Press Release For Immediate Release April 3, 2008	Media Contact: Mike Liberty Summer Institute for the Gifted River Plaza, 9 West Broad St. Stamford, CT 06902-3788 (203) 399-5187 mliberty@giftedstudy.com www.giftedstudy.com

Summer Program Helps to Meet the Needs of Gifted Students

STAMFORD, CT – With shrinking budgets and school reform, parents are finding that school districts are unable to meet the important needs of their gifted child. The Summer Institute for the Gifted (SIG) helps academically gifted students achieve their fullest potential through supplemental programs, providing the intellectual stimulation that may be lacking in schools.

The decrease in funding for gifted education programs in America’s schools prompts an important question: are the country’s schools meeting the needs of gifted students?

“Gifted students will not always make it on their own,” says Dr. Stephen Gessner, Chairman of SIG. “These programs have provided participants with additional stimulation and academic challenges beyond the traditional curriculum, which keeps them motivated and engaged in the education process. By cutting these programs, we may be putting a generation of gifted students at risk, because mainstream classroom instruction does not often meet the needs of this remarkable population,” says Dr. Gessner.

SIG offers programs to serve gifted students, their parents and educators. “SIG’s mission is to help gifted children achieve their fullest potential,” says Barbara Swicord, President of SIG. “Our program is best known for providing educational summer programs designed specifically to stimulate the intellect of academically talented students, and has been a leader in gifted education since 1984, but has expanded into programs for educators, parents and on-line programs to serve the gifted community,” said Ms. Swicord.

SIG’s residential summer camps are available to students in grades 4 through 11 and are offered at nine college campuses: Amherst College, Bryn Mawr College, Emory University, Princeton University, UC-Berkeley, UCLA, University of Michigan, UT Austin, and Vassar College. The SIG program provides the highest quality academic offerings for gifted students, and their unique approach to gifted education focuses upon the intellectual, social and emotional needs of each student. They offer the richest course curriculum available to gifted students with more than 80 challenging academic courses. The residential program is a three-week summer camp experience.

SIG also offers day programs at Bryn Mawr College, Fairfield University, Manhattanvile College, Moorestown Friends School and Stuart Country Day School, also for a three-week period. These non-residential programs are designed for students in grades K through 6 and combine a structured academic schedule with daily recreational activities. In addition to academics, both residential and day participants engage in cultural, recreational, creative exercises, entertainment, trips and a host of other activities to foster well-rounded development.

Parents of the gifted very often have difficulty locating stimulating alternative educational opportunities for their children. “We find they are faced with a variety of issues including how to identify gifted children, the characteristics of gifted children, and locating effective supplemental programs for their kids,” said Dr. Gessner. SIG is available to help parents find the best resources for their children and offers a monthly e-mail newsletter, a list of gifted resources, and availability via e-mail or phone to discuss these issues with parents.

For additional information on SIG programs for students, parents and educators, or to speak with our professional staff, contact Tara Sergo toll-free at (866) 303-4744 or by e-mail at tsergo@giftedstudy.com. Visit SIG on the web at www.giftedstudy.com.

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Over the past twenty-three summers, SIG has expanded to include eleven residential sessions and five day programs. In 2007 alone, over 2,000 academically gifted students in Kindergarten through 11th grade participated in the three-week long SIG programs. SIG is a subsidiary of the American Institute For Foreign Study (AIFS) and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.