Advanced Studies in Action!

Each year, the North Carolina Association for the Gifted and Talented recognizes outstanding contributions in the field of gifted education. Annual Awards and Scholarships will be presented at the NCAGT Annual Conference, March 12-14, 2025 in Concord, North Carolina. Contact the Awards Committee at awards@ncagt.org should you have any questions about the applications or submission process.

All nominations and applications are due by midnight on December 15, 2024.

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Advanced Studies is happy to support IB programming in CMS! IB is a comprehensive program of study that focuses on critical thinking and global-mindedness. The program seeks to develop the whole child — intellectually, personally, socially, and emotionally — through teaching of cultural understanding, language development, and volunteerism. The program reinforces a positive attitude and teaches students to ask challenging questions, reflect critically, develop research skills, and become active learners.

Ballantyne Ridge High School recently hosted the Fall General Association Meeting for IB Schools of North Carolina (IBSNC). IB educators and leaders throughout the state came together to learn from one another. Classroom visits were also conducted.

Our district has successfully completed the universal screening of all second-grade students for AIG (Academically or Intellectually Gifted) identification. Each participating school hosted informative parent sessions, and we administered an impressive 10,550 CogAT tests. As a result, many students have been identified this fall, and over 1,500 students have qualified for an additional opportunity for identification through the CMS Portfolio Process.

We have partnered with Action Plus Ideas to offer t-shirts featuring the YET University logo and the saying "gifted all day, every day."

The shop will be open until October 27th. Please place your orders through this link.

All shirts will be delivered to the Advanced Studies office, then distributed via CMS courier.

Mathapalooza 2025 will take place on Saturday, February 8th.

We are excited to share that over 40 CMS elementary schools will participate in this fun celebration of math!

• Ballantyne

• Barnette

• Berewick

• Blythe

• Bruns

• Charles Parker Academic Center

• Collinswood Language

• Cornelius

• Croft Community

• Crown Point

• Dorothy J. Vaughan

• Druid Hills

• Elon Park

• Governor's Village

• Grand Oak

• Grove Park

• Hawk Ridge

• Hidden Valley

• Idlewild

• Irwin Academic Center

• Knight's View

• Lake Wylie

• Lansdowne

• Mallard Creek

• Mint Hill

• Nations Ford

• North Academy of World Languages

• Oakhurst STEAM

• Olde Providence

• Parkside

• Pineville

• Polo Ridge

• Rama Road

• Rea Farms

• River Oaks Academy

• Shamrock Gardens

• South Pine

• Stoney Creek

• Tuckaseegee

• University Meadows

• University Park

• Villa Heights

• Westerly Hills

• Whitewater

• WIndsor Park

• Winget Park

Schools can earn the Honor Roll recognition annually based on criteria that reflect a commitment to increasing their school’s college-going culture, providing opportunities for students to earn college credit, and maximizing college readiness. The AP School Honor Roll offers four levels of distinction: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum.

We are pleased to recognize the following CMS schools on their accomplishments!

Platinum

• Ardrey Kell High School

Gold

• JT Williams Montessori
• Myers Park High School
• Providence High School
• South Mecklenburg High School
• William Amos Hough High School

Silver

• David W. Butler High School
• East Mecklenburg High School
• Levine Middle College
• Northwest School of the Arts

Bronze

• Harper Middle College

• Merancas Middle College

AP Access Award

We would also like to recognize Ardrey Kell, Hough, Merancas, and Providence for earning the AP Access Award, signifying that the schools provide all students the chance to participate in AP, including students of underrepresented populations.

Congratulations to Providence High School’s Erin Hartsell for her outstanding student achievement in AP Precalculus! The course was new for the 2023-2024 school year, and Ms. Hartsell and her students showed great dedication resulting in 99.5% of students earning qualifying exam scores, with 68% of students earning a level 5 on the AP Exam.

Participating teachers have made tremendous strides in creating more inclusive and opportunity-rich learning environments in the first year of the Action for Opportunity in History & Civics (A4EHC) grant, Educators from schools across the pilot districts have developed and implemented innovative teaching strategies aimed at increasing AP U.S. History and U.S. Government & Politics enrollment and success rates for historically underserved students.

We would like to recognize the following teachers and their schools for their dedication and leadership:

• Ardrey Kell High School - Amanda Jones, Stephen Hairgrove, and Altovese Simmons

• David W. Butler High School - Steven Rusk

• East Mecklenburg High School - Andrew Bartkowiak

• Hopewell High School - Alison Kelley and Jonathan Kinman

• Mallard Creek High School - Janna Holder

• Myers Park High School - Tommye Staton

• Palisades High School - Grace Ellis and Brianna Carter

• Phillip O. Berry - Diana McLaughlin

• Rocky River High School - Deja Cook-Brown

• West Charlotte High School - Alan Hall

• West Mecklenburg High School - Sheikia Talley-Matthews

• William Amos Hough High School - Colleen Casey

These educators have gained new insights into fostering a sense of belonging in their classrooms, ensuring that high expectations, culturally relevant curricula, and equitable assessment practices are at the forefront of their instruction.

Join us for the 2025-26 school year! We invite more teachers to join this transformative work and contribute to the mission of opportunity and excellence for every student. Don’t miss out on this exciting chance to make a lasting impact in your AP classrooms! Click here for more information and click here to nominate yourself or a colleague.

Grading Plans for NCVPS and Edgenuity Courses) All virtual courses should be reflected on schedules in PowerSchool; however, grades are not added to PowerSchool until the very end of the term. Please make sure to review the virtual learning platforms (Edgenuity or NCVPS) to see current progress.

Grading Plan - Virtual Option (see Additional Resources):

If students are enrolled in a course through NCVPS, the calendar is slightly different from the CMS calendar.

• Progress Reports - October 24th; November 7th; November 21st

• Early Start Semester Ends: December 6th

Standard Start Semester Ends: January 10th

• October 22, 2024: DREAM Session 3
  
• October 30, 2024: Early Release Day
  
• November 4-5, 2024: Teacher Workdays
• November 11, 2024: Veterans Day
• November 14, 2024: AP exam order deadline
  
• November 22, 2024: Elementary AIG Lead Professional Development
• January 1-31, 2025: Spring CDM Application Window
  

Website: https://www.cmsk12.org/advanced-studies
Location: 4421 Stuart Andrew Boulevard, Charlotte, NC, USA
Phone: 980-343-6955
Facebook: facebook.com/cmsadvanced

Instagram: instagram.com/cms_advanced
X: @CMS_Advanced