Talented and Gifted Program Returns for 2025

Dr. Nicole Cardwell-Hampton, director of youth programs in the Division of Workforce Training at Walters State, shows a Python TI Rover. The rover is used to train students in the Python TI coding language. In the foreground is an unfinished rocket used in the physics class offered as part of the college’s Talented and Gifted Program.

Enrichment Programs Targets Fifth-Eighth Graders

Walters State’s Talented and Gifted Program (TAG) is now enrolling for 2025. The program provides enrichment opportunities to students in fifth through eighth grades throughout the college’s 10-county service area.

“This year we are offering 37 classes,” said Dr. Nicole Cardwell-Hampton, director of youth programs for the college’s Division of Workforce Training. “We are bringing back many favorites, including pottery and marine biology, and we’ve added great new ones including Python Ti Coding and Vex Robotics.”

TAG meets from 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. on Jan. 11, 18 and 25 and Feb. 1. Students choose two classes. Feb. 8 is reserved as a makeup day in case one of the dates is canceled due to bad weather. The cost is $199 with scholarships available. Scholarships are funded by the East Tennessee Foundation Boyd Youth Fund and the Niswonger Foundation.

Classes offer students the chance for active, hands-on learning. Instructors are Walters State faculty members or area experts. Students spend two Saturdays studying each subject.

“One of the best benefits is the time spent on an actual college campus with college faculty and students,” Cardwell-Hampton said. “Students enjoy the time and many begin to think options after high school.”

Classes include Muggle studies, physics, adventures in math, drawing, acting, archery, biology, creative writing, crime scene investigation, forensic science, sign language, self-defense, surviving the outback, web design and underwater robotics. Several foreign languages are also offered. 

TAG packets, including registration information, are available at area middle schools and online at https://tinyurl.com/WSCC-TAG. The registration deadline is Dec. 7. Gift certificates are available. The sooner a TAG packet is submitted, the more likely it is that the student will get their first choice of classes. 
             
For more information, contact Cardwell Hampton at 423-585-6756 or Nicole.Cardwell-HamptonFREEWS.