Director's WelcomeThe RPS Gifted & Talented Department welcomes you and invites you to share in our passion for ensuring learning for all students who demonstrate a need for higher level opportunities.
Director Maggie Thelen coordinates this department, which serves grades K-12 and is supported in these efforts by two teacher consultants. All department personnel are required to possess a master’s degree in gifted education and work with other district personnel to ensure academic success for high ability students. A varied array of gifted-related services and programs are available to students, teachers and parents in the Rockford schools.
Programming provided by the Gifted & Talented Department includes teacher consultation in kindergarten through eighth grade; pull-out program for fourth and fifth grade; and testing, placement, and accelerated programming in grades six through twelve, as well as serving as a testing site for the Northwestern University Midwest Academic Talent Search.
Maggie Thelen, Director
Gifted & Talented Department
Mission
The vision of gifted education in the Rockford Public Schools is to provide exemplary differentiated programs and/or services enabling gifted learners to maximize their potential as productive learners.

2010-2011 4th-9th Grade Updates
(as of 6-14-10)
The GT Department is closed for the summer as of 4:00pm on Monday, June 14, 2010. We will open again on Monday, August 16, 2010.
No further testing recommendations or applications will be accepted.
6th Grade Advanced Math | *Letters regarding placement in 6th Grade Advanced Math have been mailed. |
7th/8th Grade ROCK | *Letters regarding qualification for ROCK courses were mailed on June 7, 2010. |
9th Grade Honors Courses | *Results for April and June testing will be mailed home the week of June 14, 2010. |