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With the start of a new year at the Gatton Academy comes several new personalities to the staff. We are excited about these passionate and dedicated individuals who have joined our team. They come to us from different parts of the country with a host of varied experiences. Over the last few weeks, the staff has had a chance to get to know each other. It’s now your chance to meet the new faces behind the Academy. Each day this week, we’ll profile a new staff member.

Academy Avatars sat down with each new staff member to post ten questions in hopes of getting to know them better. Avatars came up with a few questions that they asked each person. Each Avatar also posed unique questions of their own choosing to ask as well.

Interview by Logan Eckler, Academy Avatar

What did you do before you were hired by the Gatton Academy?

I started my career in higher education as a resident adviser when I was an undergraduate student at California State University Monterey Bay. I accepted my first professional residential life position at Laramie County Community College and before here I was at Talladega College in Alabama.

Why did you want to become an RC?

The gifted students at the Academy are the major selling point for me.

What do you think is, or will be, your favorite part about the Academy?

Being a part of helping students meet and even exceed their own expectations.

How does the Academy improve the Kentucky education system?

The Academy offers students both the intrinsic and extrinsic rewards of being properly challenged and overcoming those challenges.

How do you hope to improve the Academy experience?

I hope to offer perspective and encouragement and to make a contribution to creating the type of environment that inspires students to do their best to be their best.

What are your plans for the future?

I plan to take full advantage of educational and professional development opportunities that I may have to better serve students, while reaching some of my own personal goals.

The juniors were given the opportunity to write about their hypothetical experiences in a zombie apocalypse. How would you serve as a leader in said situation?

Movie history has shown us that for some reason I would not survive very long in that scenario.  I strongly suggest that you find alternate sources of leadership.

[Video Blog] Mad, Leah, and Corban Get Chatty on Interview Day from Gatton Academy on Vimeo.

Interview Day is one of the coolest days of the year at the Gatton Academy. It’s the time when the past, present, and the future come together in a really special event. What makes the day so great is that our current students take such an interest in their incoming classmates that they spend an entire Saturday getting to know our prospective candidates. In our latest video blog, three students are glad the day is here. They’re even more glad that they’re not the ones who are being interviewed. Well, interviewed for admissions, at least.

Class of 2012 applicants cross the Commonwealth.
Class of 2012 applicants cross the Commonwealth.

With the February 15 application deadline passed and the March 20 Interview Day looming, the Gatton Academy’s Class of 2012 is quickly beginning to take shape.

275 students began the admissions process this cycle seeking admission for the Class of 2012.  In all, 125 applicants completed met all requirements at the deadline to receive consideration for selection.

Corey Alderdice, assistant director for admissions and public relations, explained that even though the pool of applicants was smaller this year, there was a substantial increase in the quality of those students completing applications.

“We have high expectations for Gatton Academy students,” Alderdice said. “Based on our experience over the last few years, we made the decision to raise the minimum ACT math score from 22 to 24.  For high school sophomores, that can be a big leap.  That decision was not to limit our pool but to ensure those students who applied have the tools necessary to be successful as Academy students.”

Applicants seeking interviews were reviewed based on ACT or SAT scores, responses to essay questions, grades from ninth and tenth grade, and a resume of awards and activities.  85 dynamic candidates emerged from the pool of applicants.

Students proceeding to the second phase of admission will attend Interview Weekend on Saturday, March 20, 2010.  The day will include interviews, a chemistry placement exam, course scheduling, a discussion of research opportunities, and sessions for parents.

“Interview Weekend is the final opportunity for a student to convince our admissions team that the Academy is the place they should spend their final two years of high school,”  Alderdice said.  “It can be stressful, but if students are passionate about STEM subjects, then the interview is simply talking about the things they love the most.”

Applicants will receive final notifications regarding selection no later than April 1, 2010.

For more information, contact Corey Alderdice at (270) 745-2971.