Program Announcements: Date Changes to Residential Programs

Please note that we have had to make changes to the dates of the Leadership Program and the Summer Program for Academically Talented Students. The changes are as follows:

  • Leadership I, II, and III will all be held during the week of July 12-17.
  • SPATY will now be held during the week of July 12-17 for ONE WEEK ONLY with a matching reduction in cost. The new cost of the adjusted one-week SPATY program will be $700.00. Additionally, we will no longer be offering the Aerospace course due to an unforeseeable change to our teaching staff.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support. Please email any questions to our Director, Dr. Heather Houston, at hl.houston@usm.edu.

Deadline Approaching!

Registration for the following programs will be closing on May 15, 2021:

  • Day Program for Young Gifted Children
  • Summer in the Middle
  • Leadership I & Leadership II

Please visit our Programs page for course descriptions or follow this link to the application: https://forms.usm.edu/gifted/view.php?id=21095

We can’t wait to see you in just a couple of weeks!

The deadline for these July programs is just around the corner on June 15

  • Leadership III
  • Summer Gifted Studies
  • Summer Program for Academically Talented Youth

Reserve your child’s space today!

Proudly Announcing: LIVE! And In Person!

We are so excited to bring to you the 2021 line up of Programs! The wait has been far too long and we know you are ready to start your child’s journey back into civilization and engaged learning opportunities! You are welcome to start the applications, but please be advised that our online store is experiencing some delays and is still reflecting the costs for our virtual programs from 2020. The application fee is still the same and you ARE able to enter that into the store right away to get the ball rolling! Space is still limited due to social distancing, and we appreciate your understanding as we verify that we will be able to make room for everyone. As always, PLEASE wait to pay the balance of the program tuition until you hear from us regarding acceptance. Course descriptions are available on our PK-12 Programs page. The New Student Handbook will be released soon – so be on the lookout. We can’t wait to see you this summer!

Give the Gift of Encouragement

Tomorrow is Giving Tuesday, a day that has come to symbolize generosity and the pay-it-forward attitude of individuals who want to help others succeed.

Our goal here at The Karnes Center is to provide each of the students who attend our programs with the encouragement to discover their purpose and the inspiration to make their dreams come true. We welcome gifted and 2E students from around the country to attend online and in-person programs. Updates to our program lineup for 2021 will be announced in mid -January.

Our students come from a wide variety of backgrounds and cultures. During the past summer more than 50% of our attendees were awarded partial or full scholarships through the generosity of donors just like you. If you would like to encourage a child to pursue their best future, please consider giving a gift to The Karnes Center this season.

Here are some of the things that your donation can provide*:

  • $2 pays for an individual hand sanitizer bottle for one student.
  • $5 pays for a lost dorm key
  • $20 pays for shipping materials for an online course to one local student.
  • $25 pays for three student meals.
  • $30 pays for one registration fee.
  • $40 pays for shipping materials for one online course to one student outside of our state.
  • $60 pays for a dorm room for one night.
  • $150 pays for the materials one student will use during a one-week class.
  • $200 pays for one young student (PreK – 3rd grade) to attend the Day Program for Young Gifted Children.
  • $500 pays for a Chromebook and all of the software that students use while they are participating in our programs.
  • $675 pays for one middle or high school student to attend one-week of Leadership Studies.
  • $ 1000 pays for one middle or high school student to attend a week of accelerated academic courses.
  • $1500 pays for bus services for field trips to local businesses and cultural activities for an entire class.
  • $3000 covers a three-week intensive program for one high-school student.

*Amounts may vary depending on the topics taught in each course. Amounts provided are a average estimate based on the past several years.

These are only a handful of things that we need to make a child’s experience one they will never forget. Salaries and wages for Curriculum Developers, Teachers, Counselors and other workers are not included in these estimates: they need your love too.

Please visit our giving page by clicking here to process your online gift.

All that we give to children comes back to us when we turn the world over to them. Thank you so much for all that you do to support the young people in your life.

Happy Holidays from all of us at the Karnes Center!

Goodbye, Old Friend. A brief word about the end of DukeTIP.

As one of only a handful of Universities allowed to operate an affiliate program of DukeTIP, we are certainly saddened to see the end of this era in gifted educational programming.

Our founder, Dr. Frances A. Karnes, began our partnership with DukeTIP in the 1980s and we have enjoyed a wonderful relationship with the TIP administration ever since. Through that partnership we were allowed the privilege of using the Duke TIP name while hosting and managing our own program under that banner.

While that relationship has come to a close, we still welcome Academically Talented students to our summer programs whether they take place on line or on our beautiful campus in Hattiesburg, MS. If you are looking for a place to find encouragement, growth opportunities, and a community of uniquely gifted individuals, we have a place for you!

In January, we will be announcing an updated program of study for the year 2021 and hope that you will consider spending some time with us here in the Hub City. We welcome you to browse our past offerings for an idea of what we have available each year.

Thank you to our dear friends, Shawna Young, Paris Andrew, and especially Rick Courtright who joined us each year at Southern Miss for the Mississippi Awards Ceremony, and to all of the other Duke TIP staff we have worked with through the years for the support and comradery you have provided.

REGISTRATION OPEN!

The day has finally arrived! Please review the information below prior to beginning your application (link at the bottom).

Thank you for your patience as we adjusted to a virtual format! PLEASE View the program descriptions for your child on our Pk-12 Student Programs page PRIOR to completing your application. There is nothing quite as sad as a gifted child in a class they aren’t interested in. We also encourage you to meet your teacher through our Staff Page.

Some changes to note:

Price Reductions: All program prices have been reduced to reflect our virtual status. Because we already keep our programs at a break-even range, this means that the traditionally residential programs have seen a much greater reduction than the Day Program. Our teachers are hand-selected to work with our young students, so they do still have to be paid. Your tuition is a reflection of our attempt to provide fair wages to our employees, carefully selected materials you will need, and economically priced shipping options for those materials.

Registration Forms: Due to the volume of other summer camps and programs that are transitioning to a virtual world AND the deadlines we have set here at the university, we are temporarily moving BACK to our MACHFORMS application system. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, but want to encourage you that the application is actually shorter than in previous years. We have eliminated most of the health and medication items from the application for your convenience. All programs are utilizing ONE form this year as well. You will still need to complete a separate application for each child. We will move back to CampDoc as soon as possible for future programs.

PK and Kindergarten: Your class is self-paced. You will receive access to a Google Classroom with video lessons and instructions from your teacher; however, we are NOT expecting this age group to meet through Zoom for their lessons. Parents, your participation is very important to help guide little hands through the experiments and activities in a safe manner. Your supervision is required. There will be at least one (and maybe even two) Zoom event(s) that your child can participate in so that they can meet their classmates and enjoy time together.

All Programs and Courses: As part of your tuition, you will receive a package of materials that have been carefully selected to assist with the hands-on experiments or activities that your teacher has planned for you. You will receive a schedule of events on or about June 10 (or once your registration is complete) that will provide you with the times for your Zoom lessons, your access to your Google Classroom, and other social activities that will take place during the dates for your program. Zoom lessons will be staggered for the various age groups to allow siblings of different ages to participate.

Social Events: Part of what our students love about the Karnes Center is the ability to make new friends that think like they do. We will have a variety of social events schedule through Zoom for our participants in all programs – even the Day Program. Our Dorm Directors are busy planning for your engagement, excitement, and entertainment just like they always do.

The Application

Please click the link below to open YOUR APPLICATION!

2020 Virtual Summer Programs – ALL Sessions

We are so excited to see you online this summer!!!

Karnes Programs Move to Virtual Environment

Please view the following video by our director, Dr. Heather Houston, for the latest updates on the summer programs offered by the Karnes Center this Summer.

Dr. Houston shares information about the move to virtual programming.

Please allow a few days for updates reflecting these changes to be made to our registration site. Our registration site with CampDoc and the DocNetwork company may be found at: http://app.campdoc.com/register/fakcgs.

Program pricing has been adjusted to reflect the move to the virtual environment. Reductions are primarily derived from the cost of housing and food services for our traditionally residential programs. Therefore, some programs will not see as great a reduction as others. The price of all programs still includes the cost of all materials your child will need to successfully complete the program. This year that does include providing your child with a “program in a box” that will be shipped directly to your home. Please insure that when you register, you are providing the best address for that package to be safely received.

In addition to the non-refundable registration fee of $30.00, program costs will be as follows:

  • Day Program for Young Gifted Children: $175.00
  • Summer Gifted Studies Program: $400.00
  • Leadership Studies Program: $400.00
  • Summer Program for Academically Talented Youth: $1700.00

Scholarship applications will be available for the Summer Gifted, Leadership, and Academically Talented Youth Programs through the registration site this year. As always, scholarships are primarily need based and will be provided on a first come, first served basis. If funds remain after all need based applications have been filled, any remaining amounts may be awarded based on merit.

Eligibility requirements for programs will be adjusted to reflect the changes in intellectual and academic testing due to school and testing site closures as follows:

  1. Day Program Eligibility: Students may prove eligibility with a letter of recommendation from a pre-school, day-care, faith-based organization, or community organization teacher. (For example: a Sunday-school teacher or a guitar teacher.)
  2. Summer Gifted Studies Eligibility: Open to students who have just completed one or more of the following grades: 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, or 8th grades. Students may provide a letter of recommendation from a general education teacher, or the most recent report card indicating grades equal to or above an average of 90 or better in one or more of the following: English/Reading, Math, Science, or Social Studies/History. NWEA-MAP scores for Fall or Winter of the just completed school year are also acceptable and must be at or above the 90th percentile.
  3. Leadership Studies Program: Open to students who have completed one or more of the following grades: 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th grades. Any student wishing to learn about leadership and apply their learning toward improving their community is eligible to attend.
  4. Summer Program for Academically Talented Youth: Open to Academically advanced students who have completed one or more of the following grades: 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th grades. Eligibility for this program is based on academic prowess in a major subject area: English, Math, Science, Social Studies, etc. through consistently high achievement at or above the 90th percentile. Normally an ACT or SAT score would be required; however, report cards, teacher recommendations, and evidence of scholastic achievement may be presented in evidence of eligibility as well this year.

As usual, if a student has attended a program in the past, they are still eligible to attend that program again. If a child is transitioning to a new program, please let us know that they have attended other programs with us before so that we can review the records we already have to determine eligibility based on those records.

Please allow a few days for the registration site to reflect these changes. If you have any questions regarding eligibility, you may email the Center staff at giftedstudies@usm.edu.