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Exceptional Cognitive Talent and Genius

“History abounds with stories of great minds that have gifted humanity with wonderful discoveries and inventions,” Sir John Templeton wrote. “Each discovery or invention began as a ‘seed idea’ in an open and receptive mind.” As Sir John saw it, genius was perhaps the greatest engine of material and spiritual progress and could be understood as a kind of transcendent spark, a way for human beings “to be helpers in the acceleration of divine creativity.”

In pursuing Sir John’s aims, the Foundation has made a strong commitment to identifying and nurturing young people who demonstrate exceptional talent in mathematics and science. In the U.S., we have supported accelerated learning for students capable of working well beyond their grade level, and we have funded a number of important national studies of the issue. Internationally, the Foundation has sponsored academic training and competitions for students who show extraordinary potential but whose talents might not otherwise be developed, especially because of their economic circumstances or insufficient educational support.

 

A Nation Deceived: How Schools Hold Back America's Brightest Students

Author: 
Nicholas Colangelo
Susan G. Assouline
Miraca U. M. Gross
Publication Date: 
10/01/2004
file: 
application/pdf iconA Nation Deceived Volumes 1 & 2

For the first time ever, a two-volume report, A Nation Deceived: How Schools Hold Back America’s Brightest Students, shows why America’s schools routinely avoid academic acceleration. Based on research by Dr. Nicholas Colangelo and Dr. Susan Assouline of the University of Iowa, along with Dr. Miraca Gross of the University of New South Wales in Australia, the research finally brings together the wealth of information available on acceleration.

Intercultural Aspects of Creativity: Challenges and Barriers

Project Leader(s)

Roza Leikin
University of Haifa

Grantee(s)
University of Haifa (Haifa, Israel)
Description

This grant supported a workshop on the relationship between culture and creativity in mathematics and science education in conjunction with the Fifth International Conference on Creativity in Mathematics and the Education of Gifted Students.

Grant Amount:
$82,800
Start Date:
January 2008
End Date:
January 2009
Grant ID:
13219

Budapest: The Golden Years Early 20th Century Mathematics Education in Budapest and Lessons for Today

Project Leader(s)

Katherine S. Newman Malcolm Stevenson Forbes, Class of 1941 Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs, Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University

Grantee(s)
Princeton Institute for International and Religious Studies, Princeton University (Princeton, New Jersey)
Description

This October 2007 symposium gathered American and Hungarian mathematicians and social scientists to celebrate John von Neumann’s life and work, early 20th-century mathematics, and the Hungarian culture that produced so many outstanding mathematicians and scientists. A paper titled “The Social Construction of Hungarian Genius, 1867-1930” was commissioned for the symposium and presented by the historian Tibor Frank.

Grant Amount:
$63,539
Start Date:
July 2007
End Date:
January 2008
Grant ID:
12922
Grantee Website

Mathematics Competition for Chinese High School Students

Project Leader(s)

Professor Shing-Tung Yau
Harvard University

Grantee(s)
Zhejiang University
Description

This three-year grant supports the Shing-Tung Yau High School Mathematics Awards program, modeled after similar competitions in the United States, to cultivate creativity, originality, and intellectual independence among the brightest high school students in mathematics in China. Born in China, Professor Shing-Tung Yau currently chairs the Mathematics Department at Harvard University. He is the recipient of many awards, including the Fields Medal in 1982.

Grant Amount:
$1,210,000
Start Date:
March 2008
End Date:
March 2011
Grant ID:
13721
Grantee Website

Cogito.org: A Website and Online Community for Young People Gifted in Mathematics and Science

Project Leader(s)

Linda E. Brody
Director, Cogito.org
Center for Talented Youth, Johns Hopkins University

Grantee(s)
Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, Maryland)
Description

These grants established a world-class, state-of-the-art website and newsletter to attract and engage thousands of the world's brightest young people, between the ages of 8 and 18. The website features news stories for and about young scientists, searchable directories for math and science programs and activities for high ability middle and high school students, and interviews with guest experts from a range of scientific disciplines.

Grant Amount:
$2,497,972
Start Date:
September 2004
End Date:
June 2011
Grant ID:
10963, 13196

Suite of 2 separate grants totaling $2,497,972

Grantee Website

Developing Exceptional Human Capital

Project Leader(s)

David Lubinski, Co-Director
Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth [SMPY]

Grantee(s)
Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN)
Description

This grant supported longitudinal research examining the optimal mix of personal assets and environmental catalysts for accomplishing extraordinary achievement. The results of the research will be published in academic journals and distributed to policy makers and the general public.

Grant Amount:
$251,264
Start Date:
July 2004
End Date:
June 2006
Grant ID:
10914
Grantee Website

High Achieving Students in the Era of No Child Left Behind

Project Leader(s)

Chester E. Finn, Jr.
President, Thomas B. Fordham Institute

Grantee(s)
Thomas B. Fordham Institute (Washington, DC)
Description

This three-year project aims to produce and publicize four separate studies examining the impact of current education policies and practices on cognitively gifted students. Employing only the soundest and most rigorous research methods, the studies will make a long-term contribution to the literature in the field, while providing a timely analysis for Congress as it works to reauthorize the landmark No Child Left Behind Act over the next several years.

Grant Amount:
$464,340
Start Date:
August 2007
End Date:
August 2010
Grant ID:
12548
Other Participants

Steve Farkas
President, Farkas Duffett Research

Thomas Loveless
Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution

Grantee Website

Templeton National Report on Acceleration

Project Leader(s)

Nicholas Colangelo, Director
The Connie Belin and Jacqueline N. Blank International Center for Gifted Education & Talent Development

Susan G. Assouline, Associate Director
Belin-Blank International Center for Gifted Education

Miraca U.M. Gross
Department of Education, University of New South Wales

Grantee(s)
University of Iowa (Iowa City, IA)
Description

The result of this research grant was the publication and dissemination of A Nation Deceived: How Schools Hold Back America's Brightest Students, the two-volume Templeton National Report on Acceleration. The Report synthesizes research on academic acceleration and includes a "call to action" for national policy makers, educators and parents. A Nation Deceived was featured in Time Magazine, Sept. 27, 2004.

Grant Amount:
$361,800
Start Date:
September 2002
End Date:
February 2006
Grant ID:
10493
Grantee Websites

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We are not currently accepting Online Funding Inquiries for our Core Funding Areas. The next funding cycle begins August 1.

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