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Student to Student |
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Dear potential Davidson Academy students,
I've been a student at The Davidson Academy since it opened, and am also the Academy's first graduate. Looking back on my experience at the Academy, I'm definitely pleased with my choice to attend there, even though my mom and I had to move temporarily from our home in Southern California.
I'd taken a number of college classes before coming to University of Nevada, Reno, and I found that the presence of
The Davidson Academy on campus made it a lot easier to get into upper level courses and allowed me to take advantage of opportunities I wouldn't have had otherwise. It was also nice to be part of a network of students and their parents who had similar problems and interests as me and my family.
~
Alexandra Morris, First
Graduate, The Davidson Academy of Nevada
P.S. At the Academy's first graduation ceremony on May 3, Alexandra said, "I would like to thank all the people who helped to make this happen.
This would not be possible without the efforts of so many other people including the Davidsons,
everyone at the Academy,
especially Colleen, and the Davidson Institute."
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Get to Know Us |
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As we put the finishing touches on this school year and look forward to 2008-2009, we wanted to share a few facts about The Davidson Academy:
- The Academy follows the University of Nevada, Reno schedule. The last day of school is Friday, May 16.
School will resume Monday, Aug. 25 for the ’08-’09 school year.
- 44 students attended the Academy this year and we anticipate close to 80 students
next year.
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This spring 28 Academy students were enrolled in 46 college courses.
- So far, Academy students have ranged in age from 10 to 17.
This will be a very busy summer for us as we prepare to move into our permanent home on campus, the Jot Travis building and former student union. With a new location, new members of our highly-qualified staff, and with new goals to conquer, we are excited to have many new students to serve. The final application deadline is
June 1 for the ’08-’09 school year. Please contact us if you have any questions.
~
Colleen Harsin, Director of The Davidson
Academy of Nevada
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Application Deadlines Approaching
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The Davidson Academy - June 1, 2008
Deadline
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 Time is running short to apply for the 2008-2009 school year!
To be eligible to attend The
Davidson Academy of Nevada, students must be at the middle or high school level across all subject areas and score in the 99.9th percentile on IQ or college entrance tests, such as the
SAT or ACT.
The Academy is specifically designed to meet the needs of profoundly gifted
middle and high school students, starting at the sixth grade level and beyond (www.DavidsonAcademy.UNR.edu/Admissions).
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Summer Fun - June 6, 2008 Deadline |
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 Making last-minute summer camp plans? You can enjoy three weeks of challenging, college-level work, make new friends and live on the University of Nevada, Reno campus, at the
THINK Summer Institute
July 12 through August 2. Students ages 13-16 can apply with test
results that meet or exceed designated SAT or ACT scores. THINK
students have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the university campus where The Davidson Academy of Nevada is located, along with some of the professors who teach Academy students. Tuition is $2,700 and includes course credits, room and board, and planned activities. Financial assistance is available based on need.
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Student Excellence |
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Congratulations to Academy student, Emma S., who was chosen as the recipient for the
Outstanding First Year Student award
by the University of Nevada, Reno’s College of Liberal Arts’ Scholarship Awards Committee!
Congratulations to
Fangzhou L., Anthony F., and Angela X., Academy students who received award certificates for the
2008 Nevada Prize Examination in High School Mathematics!
The Green Earth Community Knowledge Organization (GECKO)
is the Academy's environmental student club.
The GECKO club raised $585 for the World Wildlife Fund by performing a cake
walk, selling food, and holding a silent auction at a recent fundraiser.
In the Academy's inaugural year, students were asked to brainstorm ideas for a
school mascot
and eventually decided on the phoenix. The
phoenix
mascot was created and is used in all internal school communications to parents and students, including the school’s private website, T-shirts, sweatshirts, etc.
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Meet Ms. Oswald, Math Instructor |
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Ms.
Oswald's son,
Max, 13, is a student at The Davidson Academy.
They moved from Sydney, Australia so that Max could attend
the Academy.
What classes do you teach?
This semester I taught Integrated Math and Formal Geometry.
What do you think is the most powerful real-world application for math?
It’s growing all the time – nanotechnology, robotics, and cybernetics come to mind, but there is also the relatively simple financial mathematics applications for all the beneficiaries of the microloans in developing countries (and now America, I hear). A vital part of the success of these small businesses is balancing the books, reinvesting the profits and sharing the wealth.
What are some ways that gifted education differs between the U.S. and Australia?
Since Australia has only 21 million people living across the same land mass as here, they, unfortunately, have many gifted students living in rural areas with little or no support for compaction of the syllabus or acceleration. Homeschooling is rare in Australia, and that option is not taken up by many families.
What are a few of the more interesting or challenging projects that you have assisted Davidson Academy students with in your classroom?
Each student has been the instructor for a lesson twice during the semester in order to get a chance to show off his/her talents and have a bit of fun in the process. We had some absolutely stellar performances that included lessons on Percussion, Buffon’s Needle, Divination through Arithmancy, The Number 7, Fractals, and
Bridge Design.
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In the News |
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The Reno Gazette-Journal recently published an article about Alexandra Morris, the first student to graduate from The Davidson Academy,
titled
UNR school to graduate first student.
Alexandra will be attending the University of California, Los Angeles.
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“…I loved how The Davidson Academy actually challenged me in how I think of things and general learning, unlike all my other schools…”
~ Second Year Davidson
Academy Student
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