“Academic fearlessness and intellectual ability that will benefit their entire generation”

Yesterday, Johns Hopkins University hosted a ceremony honoring "elementary-and middle school students from Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington D.C. who distinguished themselves through special testing as among the most academically gifted young students in the country."


The deliberately blurred photo is testimony to the fact that the "best of the brightest," hail from a spectrum of races. Every color and community, it seems, graced that stage.

In a statement to the Press, JHU stated, "With our annual award ceremonies, we're committed to giving these exceptional young people a stage on which to recognize their academic achievements, just as we celebrate achievements in athletics or the performing arts," said CTY executive director Lea Ybarra. "Their performance places them in the top tier of students taking these tests, and they certainly deserve acclaim." Who gets the credit for success? "The students," said Dr. Ybarra. "They possess an academic fearlessness and intellectual ability that will benefit their entire generation."

In Montgomery County, we select students "ready to work above grade level," label them "gifted," and incessantly argue about gifted and talented education. How many of our bright minds are being denied the opportunities they deserve by the absence of a robust, rigorous, gifted and talented program?

To our kids, who continue to surmount the challenges that adults throw in their path with "an academic fearlessness and intellectual ability that will benefit their entire generation," we should offer our accolades. Congratulations!