Important Dates for Fall 2009
- Registration for seminars will take place between 7:45 and 8:30 am in room 3316 as follows:
- Tuesday, August 25th: Students who have been given individual passes may register.
- Wednesday, August 26th: All other 10th, 11th and 12th graders may register. (9th graders who do NOT receive a pass may enroll in spring seminars in January.)
- All seminars begin the week of August 31st.
- Seminar descriptions available in the seminars page.
Talented and Gifted Program Overview
WHO: The TAG program at AHS currently consists of seven faculty members with a breadth of skills and experience. Because these individuals specialize in Science/Spanish (Mr. Rashford), Social Studies/Psychology (Ms. Drummond, Mr. Fernandez), and English (Dr. Gingrich, Ms. Swartz, and Ms. Tubiak)--respectively--we are able to meet the academic content needs of our gifted population.
WHAT: The TAG program at Alpharetta High School offers its students each of Fulton County’s varied options for receiving gifted services. Below is a brief description of each of these options.
- Seminars: Teacher-designed courses are offered based on student interest and meet weekly on a rotating schedule. The transcript reflects credit/non-credit.
- Individual projects: With the supervision of a teacher of the gifted, the student conducts in-depth research as an extension of a curriculum topic of their choice in class. The student meets with the gifted program teacher at least four times a semester. The transcript reflects credit/non-credit.
- Advanced Placement courses: These college level courses meet daily and prepare the student for the College Board Advanced Placement exam. The transcript reflects a numeric grade.
- Directed Studies: The student conducts extensive research in a particular academic are OR completes a course from the Fulton county curriculum not being offered a given semester OR completes an Advanced placement course (depending on teacher availability) or online course through Georgia Virtual School that does not fit the student’s schedule. It is a daily class and the transcript reflects a numeric grade.
- Career Internships (11/12th grades only): Businesses provide students with the opportunities to work with professionals in a field he or she is considering as a career. The student leaves school for one or two periods a day. The transcript reflects a numeric grade.
Joint Enrollment: The student may enroll in college, university or technical school courses and receive both high school and college credits. The transcript reflects a numeric grade.
WHERE: The TAG classrooms are located on the 3300 wing (upper level, green hall)
WHEN: As described above and depending on the delivery option, students meet in a ‘TAG’ class either once a week or daily.
WHY: Several parents and students question the necessity for participating in a gifted program at the high school level as described above. Below are several reasons illustrating the benefits of such a model:
- The student attends advisement conferences with the gifted teacher throughout the year focusing on academics, scheduling/class selection, college planning, etc.
- TAG classes are limited to 21 students.
- Transcripts sent to colleges indicate that the student completed additional work through gifted services.
- Participation in directed study/internship is contingent upon active status in TAG as well as TAG teacher recommendation.
- If a student fails to earn a TAG credit one semester (through any of the options listed above), the student is placed on probation. Probation requires that the same student earn a TAG credit the following semester or the student will be removed from the program.
- TAG teachers will work with students on an individual basis to ensure that their needs are being met through the program.