Connection, practical support,
& fresh ideas for gifted
educators in rural districts.
You might be the only gifted educator in your district.
You're not the only one out there.
Join a free community built for teachers just like you.
When you're the whole gifted department...
You’re writing plans. Answering parent questions. Figuring out identification. Working with classroom teachers. Advocating for students.
And when you hit a problem?
There may not be another gifted educator down the hall to ask.
I know that experience because I lived it.
I was the solo gifted coordinator trying to build services in a rural district without a roadmap.
I knew my students deserved more, but knowing that didn’t magically give me another person, another planning period, or a ready-made system.
So I started building.
The work is hard enough. Doing it alone makes it harder.
Maybe you’ve wondered whether another rural district has figured out the problem sitting on your desk right now.
Maybe you’ve searched online only to find ideas designed for districts with bigger budgets, larger teams, and far more gifted students per grade.
Or maybe you’re tired of reinventing something another gifted educator has already solved.
That’s the problem with being the only one. You don’t need another person telling you to remember your why. You need people who understand the work.
That's why I created The Rural Gifted Network
The Rural Gifted Network brings gifted educators in rural and small districts together. It’s a place to ask the question you’ve been carrying around all week. Share what’s working in your district. Learn what someone else is trying. Most importantly, it’s a place to discover that you really aren’t doing this by yourself. When gifted educators connect, students get stronger services.
As an art teacher, one student loved to show me page after page of detailed art on the back of her classwork, I began to question why she often had as much as 45 minutes to doodle and draw in class.
I realized there was no plan for students like her. The focus was on struggling learners while other students were expected to wait and stay quiet. Our district had no gifted program, no plan, and no urgency to change that. That's when I need something had to change.
With the support of district leaders, I built our district's gifted program from scratch. With zero resources and zero programming structure, I extended the basic program to include a locally-normed identification process to reach students who'd been overlooked for years.
This new program was immediately a great success. I knew the work was making a difference in our small district. However, as much as I loved working with my gifted students, I began to feel overwhelmed and isolated.
My turning point was creating a county-wide collaborative. That really turned my burnout into a blueprint.
Now, I help other gifted educators do the same.
If you're trying to do everything and feel a bit overwhelmed or isolated, you're not alone. It doesn't have to feel this way.
15+ Years of Experience | Solo Gifted Personnel in Small Rural District
Creator of Gifted Ed Sidekick | Regional Gifted Collaborative Founder
Built Rural Gifted Program from Scratch
Advocate for Inclusive Gifted Programming with Local Norms
What you'll find inside
Join the Free Community
Who understand rural and small-district realities
Practical resources & templates
You can adapt instead of starting from scratch every time
Monthly webinars or live meets
Conversation, questions, peer sharing, and fresh ideas
Ready to get started?
It's not about adding one more thing to your already full plate.
It's about having somewhere to go when you need a person who gets it.
There's no membership price hiding on the next screen.
And yes. It really is free.
There's no membership price hiding on the next screen. This space exists to connect gifted educators and make sure the person carrying gifted services in a small district has somewhere to turn. No complicated offer. Just come fine your people.
To Get Started... Here are five free resources you can download immediately.
Here are five free resources you can download immediately! I'd love to have feedback on the tools - were they helpful, suggested changes, etc.
For access to even more resources, join us.
You'll get instant access to my growing collection of free tools in the Free Resource Locker for members and receive weekly emails with new tools, suggested resources, templates, strategies, and more.
Goodbye planning fatigue. This template helps you differentiate a lesson or a unit simply.
Ready for you to make your own. This hub will save you time by keeping your top tools in one place.
Early Finisher Ideas Folder
Here's a list of ready-made, meaningful early finisher tasks your students will want to do.
Keep it clear. Keep it simple. This simplified checklist keeps you on track & eliminates "shiny objects"
Join the Rural Gifted network
Let's Stay Connected
Somewhere out there is another gifted educator trying to solve a problem that looks a whole lot like yours... It's time you two meet.
If you're building or servicing gifted services in a rural or small district and wish you had someone who understands the work, this community was created with you in mind.
You may be the only gifted educator in your district, but you won't be the only one in our community! Join before our next live meet up in October to meet some of your people.
You don't have to build gifted services alone.
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