MCPS outlines supports and identification gaps for twice-exceptional students

Montgomery County Public Schools officials updated the Board of Education Special Populations Committee Sept. 29 on services for “twice-exceptional” students — children identified with both high cognitive potential and one or more disabilities — and warned that inconsistent identification and uneven access to supports are leaving some students without appropriate services.

Christy Clark, supervisor in Accelerated and Enriched Instruction for MCPS, introduced the presentation and turned it over to Sarah Jackson, the district’s twice-exceptional instructional specialist. Jackson described twice-exceptional learners as students who “have been identified both as having cognitive potential, usually in the ninetieth percentile or higher for their age, and they’re also identified as having one or more challenges or disabilities.”

Jackson said twice-exceptional students frequently “mask” — one aspect of their profile hiding another — which complicates detection and placement. She said MCPS estimates there are about 3,000 twice-exceptional students countywide, of which roughly 800 have individualized education programs (IEPs). Those students are distributed across more than 200 schools, Jackson said, and that spread makes cohorting and targeted services difficult for many children.

Why it matters: Twice-exceptional students can perform well on conventional measures while struggling with executive functioning, anxiety or other needs. Committee members said late or missed identification can mean students reach middle and high school without supports that would improve classroom access and long-term outcomes.

What staff described - Instructional approach: Jackson said supports include content acceleration or enrichment inside general education classes combined with specially designed instruction — often focused on executive functioning, self-advocacy and social‑emotional skills. She urged that enrichment need not mean heavy workloads but rather “a more complex workload” that builds thinking skills without creating unnecessary barriers. - Cohorting and access: Jackson noted cohorting is a gifted‑education best practice that can be especially important for twice-exceptional youth who may not feel they belong with either typical gifted groups or other special‑education placements. - Identification challenges: MCPS currently flags students as gifted at the end of second grade; Jackson told the committee the district lacks a separate, systemwide “twice-exceptional” flag. That combination of delayed formal gifted identification and varied school‑level practices means some eligible students go uncounted and unsupported, Jackson said. - Professional learning and resources: Clark and Jackson said the district is expanding professional learning. Clark said the district plans a fall series of virtual parent information nights on gifted identification and related topics and will record the sessions for the MCPS website. Jackson and colleagues said a Maryland‑recognized professional course, Recognizing and Serving Twice‑Exceptional Students, typically reaches 40–80 educators per year, and the office plans revised guidance and a third edition of its Twice‑Exceptional Handbook.

Board concerns and equity context Board members raised concerns about uneven expertise across schools and barriers for English‑language learners (referred to in the meeting as EML students). District officials acknowledged that identification is “only as good as the team in front of the child” and said outreach, training and materials are being pushed out to classroom staff, special‑education teams and school psychologists to reduce uneven practice.

Clark said the district will increase community outreach and invited the board to publicize forthcoming parent sessions. “We felt that it's very important to get the information directly to our families,” Clark said, adding the sessions will be virtual and recorded so families can access them later.

What the district will do next Staff said they will: expand targeted professional learning for school psychologists and resource teachers; refine identification pathways so school teams can more easily flag giftedness when it coexists with a disability; publish updated guidance and the Twice‑Exceptional Handbook; and offer parent information nights and other resources to improve family awareness and advocacy.

Committee follow-up Committee members asked staff to return with more detail on a continued decline in enrollment in the district’s twice‑exceptional regional program, and to provide final copies of the updated handbook and the district’s outreach schedule. Jackson said she would present updated enrollment and identification numbers at a future meeting.