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Board renews Franklin Pierce highly capable plan after discussion of screenings and language access
Summary
Trustees approved the Franklin Pierce Highly Capable Students Program annual plan for 2025–26 after staff described second-grade universal screening (pictorial CogAT), referrals for Project Excel, district-level selection committee, and coding/placement procedures and answered questions about thresholds and language accessibility.
The Franklin Pierce School District board unanimously approved the 2025–26 Highly Capable Students Program renewal at its Feb. 10 meeting after a staff presentation that outlined screening, referral and placement procedures.
Staff described universal screening in second grade using a pictorial CogAT that supports English and Spanish, followed by teacher and community referrals for Project Excel in fourth and fifth grades. Administrators said district selection uses multiple measures: CogAT results, benchmark assessments, classroom program data and teacher/ELD specialist input. A district-level committee that includes administrators, highly capable teachers, a counselor and a family liaison reviews referrals to select students for Project Excel and subsequent accelerated placements at the middle-school transition.
Staff also explained program coding used for state funding and record-keeping (code 32 for identified second graders in gen-ed classrooms, 33 for the school’s uniquely highly capable program, 34 for accelerated middle-school placements and 35 for nontraditional placements). Board members asked about thresholds and whether identification required students to be proficient in all areas; staff said there is no single rigid cutoff and the process is multi-layered.
Why it matters: The plan governs how the district identifies and serves students in advanced learning tracks and clarifies language-access measures to ensure multilingual learners are considered.
What comes next: The plan will take effect for the 2025–26 school year; staff said they will continue outreach and monitoring of enrollment in accelerated classes.
