History

Brief History

1999: Allegheny College’s Creating Landscapes three-week summer exploration in the artsand sciences was extended into the academic year, piloted with gifted and self-identified talented middle school students from three area school districts.  The program was called The Middle School Arts Immersion/Exploration Program.

2001: Richard Astor, Superintendent of the Conneaut School District, invited Creating Landscapes to develop an academic program in both arts and sciences for high school students.  Crawford Central and PENNCREST School District supported his proposal.  In fall 2001, a small program for Gifted and Talented High School Students was successfully piloted.  Each succeeding year the program became larger. 

2004 at the request of the school district’s gifted coordinators: The Middle School Critical Thinking Immersion Program in Science and Social Science was successfully piloted.

Rationale: To Provide a Plethora of Opportunity


This program is an opportunity to approach middle and high school students through learning and teaching with multiple emphases.  Here are opportunities that not only consider the inter-disciplinarity of large ideas, critical thinking, imaginative expression, and community building but also augment critical thinking by engaging the emotions and the senses.  In addition, many Allegheny students take advantage of the opportunity to participate as program interns.  Their insights provide direct feedback to faculty and program administrators.  Our 2016-2017 academic year begins with 221 high school and 165 middle school students.  If there were more space, there would be more middle school students and more school districts participating.

This gifted/talented program is an opportunity to approach middle and high school public education students through occasions for learning and teaching that emphasize the inter-disciplinarity of large ideas, critical thinking, imaginative expression, and community building.  It is also an opportunity for Allegheny College to come into contact with a sizeable group of curious and engaged local students.  In addition, many Allegheny students take advantage of the opportunity to participate as program interns.  Their insights provide direct feedback to faculty and program administrators: a significant factor in the program’s ongoing evolution.

Schedule, Assessment, and Compensation


Each sixty minute class period meets on 12 Fridays over the course of the academic year—six each semester.
Faculty Assessment of student work is requested after sessions 6 and 12.  Generic assessment forms are provided.  However, some faculty members choose to design a personal or course specific assessment rubric.   Assessments address the quality of student participation, are placed in each student’s home school permanent record and maintained at the home school.
Compensation:  A teaching honorarium is $50.00 per period taught.  Paychecks are issued at the end of October, December, February and April.  Expenses are reimbursed at the end of each semester.   

Procedure


Interested faculty are invited to submit a course proposal (a black proposal form is enclosed).  Proposals need to be sent electronically to Jan Hyatt by January 15th, 2017.  Early in February eligible students receive a booklet of course offerings from their school guidance counselor or gifted coordinator.  Middle School Students are invited to choose within the Arts Immersion and Science/Social Science Offerings.  High School students determine a first and second choice for each of three periods.   Generally, students are not permitted to repeat a course.  There are, however, exceptions.  Each course must have at least 6 enrolled students.  By mid-June faculty are notified whether or not their course(s) has/have been sufficiently enrolled.   

Additional Questions?  Call Jan Hyatt: 814-333-8623, text 814- 720-0051 or writejan@creatinglandscapes.org.