The Utah State Office of Education announced the creation of the Utah Center for the Advancement of Reading Excellence (UCARE) aimed at improving services for gifted and talented readers in 60 low-income, Title I schools throughout the state.
The center is funded in part by a $352,715Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Program grant that is focused on increasing the number of minority and other underrepresented students in gifted and talented programs.
“It is vital to Utah’s future that all of our students get the opportunity to succeed first in school and later in the economy,” said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Brad C. Smith. “This program helps our schools to identify and teach some of our most promising students who might have otherwise gone underserved because of their economic or ethnic background.”
The 60 schools – which include charter and private schools in addition to traditional neighborhood schools –involved in the UCARE program will receive assistance in identifying gifted and talented readers, professional development on how to best serve these students, coaching on improving advanced and gifted readers, and access to an interactive website to provide additional help to teachers.
