Advancing GATE March 17, 2026

It was great to see everyone yesterday. It meant a lot to come together to send off Andrea and celebrate Judi, Judy, and Michelle as they get ready to retire. Thank you to everyone who helped make that time meaningful, whether you supported with setup, shared poems, brought decorations, served cake, or contributed in other ways. Those details mattered and did not go unnoticed.

This week’s newsletter includes links to resources from our professional development day, along with the final agenda. Please reach out if you have questions or need support.

Have a great rest of your week.

I’m glad so many of you found the PD on Canva and communicating family newsletters through Schoology helpful. The instructional technology team is a strong support, and we appreciate their work with us. You can find the Canva slides Newsletters for GATE families and newsletter resources for GATE families from the instructional technology team linked here. The team is also asking that you complete the 2025-26 Instructional Technology Professional Learning Exit Ticket when you have a moment.

Your next newsletter is due April 15 and should be uploaded through the Family Newsletter Submission Form . The link will continue to live in the Helpful Links section. Many of you are already making strong progress. I will share sample newsletters in Advancing GATE to help provide ideas, and we will continue to partner with the instructional technology team in future sessions.

The following positions are now posted in Oracle: If you are interested, you are encouraged to apply soon.

GATE Facilitator .
GATE Accelerated Model (GAAM) Teacher

The traditional GATE Teacher Pool is also open. If colleagues ask about openings, please encourage them to apply through Oracle.

If you are applying for a GAAM Model teacher role, please plan to attend the next performance task on Friday, March 27. Candidates who move forward will participate in a collaborative session from 8:30 to 12:00. Those interested in the specialized Curriculum Development or Coaching roles will return from 1:30 to 3:30 for a second session.

We are 98% complete with testing. There are just 77 students remaining to be tested this week!

Please also cheer on our PreK team as they test an additional 120 students over the next two weeks and support our next group of GATE students.

The MNPS Vision department, based at Carter Lawrence, recently partnered with first and second grade students during a unit on Helen Keller. Students learned to read braille cards, typed their names in braille, and created artwork using raised line materials. This work supported both content learning and a clearer understanding of accessibility. Thank you for sharing, Candee!

Check out this great artwork!Two Haywood GATE students placed fourth and fifth in the 4H poster contest. This is a great example of student effort and creativity. Thank you for sharing, Adrienne!

You are invited to share classroom highlights for the GATE newsletter as we begin to feature more classroom-level celebrations. This can include student work, instructional practices, professional learning, or events that support gifted learners.

To submit, complete the Advancing GATE Newsletter Submission Form. These contributions help show the work happening across schools.

The National Center for Research on Gifted Education at the University of Connecticut is conducting a national survey to help inform future research in gifted education for the U.S. Department of Education. They are seeking input from educators and professionals across roles and states to ensure a broad and representative perspective. The survey asks participants to share their role and location, respond to open-ended questions about the field, and rate their knowledge and the importance of key topics related to identification, services, and student needs. The survey is voluntary and available online at https://s.uconn.edu/giftedsurvey. Participants may also choose to enter a drawing for funded attendance at a national conference, and sharing this survey will help strengthen the field’s collective input.