Welcome to the new site of the Frances A. Karnes Center for Gifted Studies! We are still maintaining updates on our blog page while this site is continuing to be built.
The Center for Gifted Studies was established in 1979 through the efforts of Dr. Frances A. Karnes to bring the educational needs of gifted students in Mississippi to the forefront of educational policy development through advocacy, research, and provision of services for high-ability students. Twenty years later, Dr. Karnes’s “tireless, unwavering determination” had galvanized the Center’s reputation as a consistent frontrunner in the development of enrichment and talent development programs. The Center was renamed in her honor in 1999.
Today the Center flourishes as it strives to reach its vision of becoming one of the Southeast’s most prominent and effective homes for Gifted Studies. This vision is paired with our mission to strengthen gifted education in Mississippi, throughout the nation, and globally by continuing to uphold four stringent performance standards:
- Outstanding programming for children and youth that enhances the opportunities available for hundreds of students and their families each year (Student Programs);
- Online programming that inspires innovation and ensures the continuation of a skilled cadre of teachers of the gifted throughout the state (Educator Programs);
- Ongoing research that encompasses the development of best practices for gifted planning, programming, teaching, and outreach (Center Staff and Educators' Ambassadors Program);
- Outreach to parents that builds support systems, offers guidance for the social-emotional and vocational needs of gifted students, and builds a network of families advocating for their children in their local community and beyond (Parent Programs).
Click on the plus sign below to see an overview of the many services offered for students, parents, and educators.