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Summer school for profoundly gifted students wraps up

Page Last Updated: Wednesday July 28, 2010 3:34pm PDT

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Victoria Campbell, News 4

They are among the best and brightest students in the nation, and they're spending three weeks this summer at the THINK Summer Institute on the UNR campus.

Fifty-nine profoundly gifted students between 13 and 16 years old are taking accelerated college courses in statistics, philosophy, and nano- and micro-technology as part of the Davidson Institute's summer program. The students test in the 99.9 percentile for intelligence, and are accepted to the program only after undergoing rigorous testing and application processes.

"We take conversations about the brain and then start talking about intelligence and education," said Ashley Van Havel, 16. "Then we start talking about politics. There are never awkward silences and there's never a dull moment."

"It's a lot more intense," said Luke Ahlemann, 14, from Salt Lake City. "During the regular school year, we'll get a reading assignment and do it on the weekend.

"But this is a lot more work in a lot less time."

The students earn college credits for taking the courses, and their teachers-- who usually teach undergraduate and graduate college courses at UNR-- say they're stunned at their progress.

"They're on the caliber of excellent graduate students," said Melissa Burnham, Ph.D. "It's shocking."

The Davidson Institute conducts classes for profoundly gifted students from all over the country during the conventional school year. For more information, click here. For more information on the summer THINK program, click here.

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