Program Structure

Project 2010 meets on weekdays for three weeks. Students may enroll in either the Morning Program or the Full-Day Program. On the evening of the final day, August 6, students and faculty present an Open House for parents, featuring student performances and classroom exhibits and activities.

Morning Program:

For all students, mornings consist of two classes, chosen by the students themselves. On some mornings, students and faculty assemble for a half-hour Colloquium, which may include class performances, guest presentations, or fiercely competitive trivia bowls.

Full-Day Program:

The afternoon component of the Full-Day Program provides in-depth, hands-on exploration of a single theme of the student's choice. This immersion into a topic affords each student the privilege of mastering its content.

After their morning classes, full-day students go to the cafeteria for lunch, then begin their workshops at 12:30. They bring sack lunches, including drinks. Refrigeration is not available.

Eligibility Requirements

All Applicants: Students must be entering grades 6-11 for fall 2010. Bright, motivated children from any city or educational setting, whether public, private, parochial, or home school, are eligible. Although applicants need not be enrolled in school gifted programs, achievement test scores of most Center for Gifted students rank at or above the 95th percentile in some areas.

New Students: Any applicant who never has attended a program of The Center for Gifted must submit a letter of recommendation from an educator. This letter should speak directly to the student's individual academic, intellectual and/or creative talent and performance. It may be sent with application or separately.

Returning Students: Applicants who previously have attended programs of The Center for Gifted are eligible upon our timely receipt of their applications and do not require teacher recommendation letters.

We sensitively consider exceptions. Parents may request a conference with the Director regarding their child's particular circumstances.

Application - Two Options

1. Register online using our secure SSL-encrypted registration system. Payment may be made in full at time of registration, or a 20% deposit may be made with the balance automatically charged to the same credit card on July 5.

2. Download an application form, fill it out, and mail it with a $150 deposit to: The Center for Gifted, Box 364, Wilmette, IL 60091.

There are no application deadlines; applications will be accepted until the program begins.

Parents are notified of enrollment status within two weeks after our receipt of their complete applications. Applications from new students are not complete until we also receive their teacher recommendations. Parents who wish to confirm our receipt of their applications before enrollment status is determined may contact The Center for Gifted at 847-901-0173 or [email protected].

Placement

Students who are accepted are placed in classes on a rolling basis, per date of their application. Students are placed so that the grade-level span of students in any one classroom usually will not exceed three years. A week or two before the program begins, parents receive an email with individual class assignments and a link to maps, directions, and information about our on-site parent seminars. Enrollment packets will be sent via regular mail to those who do not have an email address.

Transportation

Carpooling:

If interested in carpooling, check the appropriate blank on your application and telephone us after May 1 for more information.

Bus Service

Suburbs: We provide bus service to and from station stops for three Metra train lines and one CTA train line for morning arrival and 12:00 and 3:00 departures.

• Milwaukee North Line: Morton Grove Station
• Union Pacific Northwest Line: Park Ridge Station
• Union Pacific North Line: Main Street Station in Evanston
• CTA Purple Line: Main Street Station in Evanston

Visit www.metrarail.com and www.transitchicago.com for schedules and station information.

This summer we will be adding bus service to and from Cooper Middle School in Buffalo Grove, the location of our Summer Wonders program, for morning arrival and 12:00 and 3:00 departures.

Chicago: Our buses run to and from the following Chicago locations for morning arrival and 12:00 departure. In response to interest in bus service for our afternoon classes, we are adding a 3:00 departure.

• 95th and State
• Washington and Michigan
• Western and Milwaukee
• Western and Irving Park
• Western and Devon
• Western and Howard

The fee for our bus service is $85 round trip or $45 one way for the entire three weeks, regardless of how many days the student plans to ride, and must be paid by July 1.

Payments / Refunds / Withdrawals

Project 2010 requires a tuition deposit of 20% when registering online or $150 by check, money order, or credit card authorization when mailing the application. The deposit will be credited to tuition, and $50 is non-refundable. Please make checks payable to The Center for Gifted.

The balance of tuition for Project 2010 is due on July 5.

If a student withdraws before the program begins, tuition and fees (minus the $50 non-refundable processing fee) are refunded. There are no credits or refunds for withdrawing after the program begins, for absences for any reason, or for late enrollments. There are no sibling discounts.

Financial Assistance

The Center for Gifted will consider payment plans and scholarships for families who can demonstrate financial need. In order to extend the opportunity to attend to as many students as possible, scholarships will only be given for the morning classes. Payment plans will be considered for both morning and full-day students. Please contact us at 847-901-0173 or [email protected] for additional information and our financial aid form.