OCPS opening new gifted-only school for elementary students

ORANGE COUNTY – Parents of gifted kids will soon have the opportunity to enroll their child in a school designed to meet their intellectual needs on a full-time basis.

Orange County Public Schools is planning to open its very first magnet school for elementary students with a curriculum catered to challenge the minds of kids who have been determined eligible for the gifted student education program.

Bus transportation will not be provided for students accepted into the school, which will be located at 1121 N. Fern Creek Avenue, Orlando, at the campus of what has been the Fern Creek Elementary. The school's student body will be redistributed to other school campuses, including three new K-8 schools.

The new Elementary Gifted Magnet School, which will have a program capacity of 434 students, will accept students ranging from second to fifth grade. According to district documents, the school board is also currently planning to provide services for sixth graders in the following year at the same campus in the future.

Given the limited capacity, eligible gifted students are not guaranteed admission. Parents will need to apply on behalf of their child – who must be determined eligible for the gifted program through the County before applying – using the School Choice application process and lottery. The application timeframe of which began Nov. 1 and closes at midnight on Feb. 15, 2018. 

But the school is not the only option for parents with gifted students, as OCPS currently provides gifted services at several local schools and plans to have those services remain available. 

But the gifted services at the local schools differ from the upcoming magnet school’s program because the new school’s program will be full-time and feature a standard curriculum emphasizing project-based learning and extension activities. District documents also make mention that the new school will have elective courses including music, art, world languages and physical education, and extracurricular activities will be offered based on student interest.