by Matthew Burke, EXPLORE Alumnus In ninth grade, while studying for midterms and slogging through term papers, I started daydreaming about how I wanted to spend my summer. Ideally, I wanted to do scientific research, but given my age, I wasn’t sure what types of opportunities...
by Jocelyn Shen, EXPLORE Alumna As an intern at the UCLA Department of Biomathematics for the past two summers, I have developed as a researcher, as well as a person, under the mentorship of Dr. Van Savage. Two years ago, when I first started the EXPLORE...
It’s always a joy to watch our Academy students be challenged by the enrichment classes we offer, ranging from Kitchen Chemistry to Myths and Monsters. Academy allows the gifted students we serve engage with a community of peers and return home eager to talk about...
by Niña Abonal, Senior Program Coordinator To celebrate the beginning of a new year, we wanted to take a look back at some noteworthy moments from 2017! IEA has expanded and bought a house! Through the generosity of our donors, IEA was able to purchase a beautiful craftsman...
Here were the Institute for Educational Advancement's top blog posts in 2017: Why Are So Many Gifted Children Also Highly Sensitive? An explanation of what it means to be highly sensitive, as well as a summary of the many pros and some cons of being a HSP. 25...
by Bonnie Raskin, Caroline D. Bradley Scholarship Manager As the Program Manager for the Caroline D. Bradley (CDB) Scholarship program, I’ve been asked by prospective applicants how to “best” prepare their application so that it not only gets read, but stands out. There really are no...
by Morgan Carrion, Assistant to the President Pour some hot coco; grab your scissors, tape and glue. Science + crafts who knew?! Look no further for a holiday craft bound to brighten the season. Below you’ll find instructions for how to make a light up card using a simple...
by Abby Daniels, Director of Development & Communications On November 17th, under twinkling patio lights amidst festive fall décor, a vibrant group of gifted education advocates gathered to support the Institute for Educational Advancement’s (IEA) programs and services. IEA’s annual fundraiser, the Awards Dinner & Celebration, was...
by Nicole LaChance, Marketing and Communications Coordinator There are a lot of myths out there about gifted students. Today I want to highlight and debunk some of the most common ones we hear in the course of our work advocating for gifted kids. Gifted Students Don’t Need...
As Thanksgiving approaches, we’d like to take a few minutes to give thanks to our IEA community! Thank you to all the parents and volunteers who devote their time and resources to support IEA’s programs and services. Whether it’s helping decorate our new learning space, facilitating...
by Nicole Endacott, Program Assistant Happy American Education Week! Every year, American Education Week celebrates individuals and organizations that ensure every child receives a quality education. Whether you are a parent, student, educator, or other supporter of learning, there are things you can do to honor...
by Alexis Hopper, Academy Program Coordinator The world is so empty if one thinks only of mountains, rivers & cities; but to know someone who thinks and feels with us, & who, though distant, is close to us in spirit, this makes the earth for us...
by Qiao Li, Coordinator The tendency to be a perfectionist is within all of us. As I start writing this blog, I find myself typing and deleting, starring at the screen trying to brainstorm the perfect sentence to write. Perfect sentence to write? That sounds oxymoronic! Perfectionism...
by Kelly Gray, Development Assistant While certain tasks or assignments may come easier for gifted students, it does not mean that they do not struggle or have setbacks. In many cases, due to the very high expectations gifted students set for themselves, they can face even...
by Malaina Kapoor, 2015 Caroline D. Bradley Scholar, originally written for the Christensen Institute Innovative schools are on the rise across the world and are transforming the way we think about K–12 education. These schools are no longer following the traditional model of education. They are...
by Abby Daniels, Director of Development & Communications On Friday, November 17th, the Institute for Educational Advancement (IEA) will honor three tremendous individuals who have worked to address the needs of gifted education in our community. Here’s a little bit more about them. Raising the Bar for...
Pipeline to Success was a pilot program developed by IEA in partnership with the Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) and Avery Dennison Foundation. Designed specifically to serve highly able, underserved youth in PUSD, the program ran from 1999 to 2010. The program provided gifted middle and...
by Anvi Kevany, Administrative Assistant As an involved parent and professional working within the education system, I have attended numerous parent teacher conferences throughout the years. First, as a parent of three gifted children; second, as a professional support staff working with teachers and parents; third,...
by Michelle Bodwell, LMFT, ATR Fall is here. School has started again, and the wonderful freedom and chaos of summer has come to an end. As a parent, I do my best to embrace the fullness of each summer season. The loosening of the scheduling belt, the...
The Institute for Educational Advancement (IEA) is excited to announce that 28 middle-schoolers from across the country have been named 2017 Caroline D. Bradley Scholars. The Caroline D. Bradley Scholarship is a four-year high school scholarship for gifted learners to attend an optimally matched high...
By Byron Lichtenstein - CDB Scholar, Yunasa Camper, Apprentice, IEA Board Member My relationship with IEA began in 2002 when I was a seventh grader. I grew up the product of 40-student classrooms and overworked teachers in a large California public school system. At age 7,...
Curated by Niña Abonal, Senior Program Coordinator From staff members traveling to conduct CDB Scholarship interviews, Yunasa camps teeming with energetic campers, Academy classes bustling with curious learners, and EXPLORE students externing at sites all over Los Angeles, summertime at IEA is nothing short of eventful. Not...
by Heather Honig, IEA Intern This summer, I came home from college hoping to gain experience working for a non-profit organization. While I still have some time before I have to choose a career path, I have always been passionate about giving back to my community....
By Cadence, 8, Academy Student This summer, I took two Academy classes, Brain Function and Algorithms in Nature and Technology, taught by instructor Ms. Nathalie Blume. Ms. Nathalie kindly connected me with Dr. Wendy Gilmore, Associate Professor of Neurology and Cell and Neurobiology in the Multiple...
We asked our community what websites they recommend for gifted kids. Here’s what they had to say! Byrdseed “Byrdseed is all about better understanding our gifted learners. Stick around and you’ll learn how to differentiate lessons, teach across the content areas, and appreciate gifted kids’ unique social...