Indiana Gifted Program Newsletter Guide for Coordinators

Indiana uses the term "high-ability students" rather than "gifted," and that language reflects a slightly different philosophy: broader eligibility criteria, a focus on potential as well as demonstrated performance, and a commitment to identifying students who might be missed by traditional gifted frameworks. Your newsletter should reflect these distinctions while communicating the practical reality of what your program provides and how families can engage with it.

Indiana's High-Ability Student Framework

Indiana law requires that schools identify and serve high-ability students in general intellectual ability and specific academic areas. The framework uses a multi-criterion approach that considers performance and potential, which means a student who shows strong aptitude but has not yet performed at grade level in all areas may still qualify. Your fall newsletter should explain this distinction. Families often assume that identification is based only on past grades, and many gifted underachievers or twice-exceptional students are missed because their families never request evaluation.

Identification Process and Timeline

Walk families through your district's specific identification process, including what assessment tools are used, who provides input (teachers, parents, testing data), who reviews the portfolio of information, and what the timeline from referral to determination looks like. Indiana's multi-criterion model means that the process involves more data points than a single test. Explaining this upfront helps families understand why identification takes time and why a single data point alone does not determine eligibility.

What High-Ability Services Look Like

Indiana districts deliver high-ability services through a variety of models: resource rooms, differentiated instruction, honors coursework, subject acceleration, and cluster grouping. Whatever your specific model, describe it clearly. A monthly enrichment update explaining the current unit, the learning goals, and what students are working on gives families a concrete picture of the program. High-ability families who understand the program are more likely to reinforce it at home and advocate for it publicly.

Purdue GERI and University Partnerships

Purdue University's Gifted Education Resource Institute is one of the most respected university gifted education programs in the country. GERI offers summer residential programs, online courses, and research-based enrichment for high-ability students from Indiana and beyond. Indiana University's precollege programs and enrichment opportunities through IU Bloomington provide additional options. Your newsletter should explain these programs with application information and scholarship details, since many Indiana families do not know that university-based enrichment is accessible to middle and elementary school students.

Academic Super Bowl and Competition Calendar

Indiana Academic Super Bowl is a distinctive state competition with categories in Arts and Humanities, Social Studies, Science, Mathematics, and English. It draws thousands of Indiana students at the regional and state level. Science Olympiad Indiana state tournament, MATHCOUNTS chapter and state competition, and Future Problem Solving all provide additional challenge pathways. For each competition, include grade eligibility, registration deadline, commitment level, and whether your school has historically supported participation costs.

Acceleration Options in Indiana

Indiana supports subject acceleration and early college enrollment for qualifying students. Several Indiana districts have formal acceleration protocols that reference the Iowa Acceleration Scale and similar decision-making frameworks. Your newsletter should explain what acceleration looks like in your district: what options are available, who initiates the process, what evidence is considered, and what timeline families can expect. Many Indiana families do not realize that acceleration is an option their district considers until someone tells them directly.

A Sample Indiana Newsletter Section

Here is language that works: "High-Ability Identification Update: Referral forms for this year's identification cycle are due October 15. If you believe your child may qualify, submit a form at the front office or email me directly. We test in November and communicate decisions in writing by January 31. Parents can submit nominations alongside teacher nominations. Your input matters and is part of the official review." Daystage makes sending that kind of clear, actionable update to your entire family list straightforward and professional.

Family Engagement and Advocacy

Indiana Association for the Gifted is a statewide advocacy organization that offers resources, workshops, and networking for high-ability program families and educators. Connecting your families to this organization in your newsletter, even once a year, gives them access to a support community that extends beyond your school. Families who are connected to a broader advocacy network are more effective advocates when the program faces budget pressure, which in Indiana's locally funded landscape, it eventually will.