The director of the Center for Gifted Studies at WKU says Kentucky is entering uncharted territory by having two math and science academies.
State lawmakers approved funding this year to open the Craft Academy at Morehead State University.
The pr0gram, scheduled to start in 2015, will be modeled after WKU’s Gatton Academy that’s home to Kentucky’s brightest high school students who are pursuing careers in math, science, technology, and engineering.
"Residential schools like the Gatton Academy have been around since 1980. There are 15 states that have a state school, but no state has two," explains Dr. Julia Roberts, Director of the Center for Gifted Studies at WKU. "So we are moving into uncharted ground.
Dr. Roberts says she hopes the two schools can form partnerships.
“It will help more Kentucky students have the opportunity to learn at the very highest level. I think that’s how we must look at it," she states.
She adds that Gatton Academy students already come from most every part of the state. In the seven years since it opened, Gatton has attracted students from 113 of Kentucky’s 120 counties.
