SCATS
The Summer Camp for Academically
Talented Middle School Students
June 8 - 20, 2025
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| Courses Available at Later Time | Financial Assistance |
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Registration will open in January. Make sure to join our Monthly Update email list to keep up with all future happenings at The Center.
A two-week camp held in June, SCATS offers high-ability students who have completed grades 6–8 a unique learning environment to explore new ideas, develop concepts, make friends, and share experiences. Students arrive at the WKU campus from counties around Kentucky, states across the nation, and countries around the world to challenge themselves academically and to meet like-minded peers with diverse backgrounds and interests.
Where Will They Stay?
Residential campers participate in evening and weekend activities and live on WKU's
campus in an air-conditioned residence hall under the supervision of camp counselors.
Curriculum
SCATS provides a diverse curriculum and a wide range of enrichment experiences for
about 150 middle school students every summer. Course options change each year but
always range from the arts and humanities to mathematics and sciences. From a list
of about 20 classes, students rank their top ten choices and are placed in four, which
they attend every weekday.
Teachers are drawn from the WKU faculty, outstanding area teachers, and teachers who are enrolled in the WKU graduate program in gifted studies. They structure their courses around students’ interests and understand how to allow students to learn at higher levels and to think and create in their own ways. Courses change each year.
What Else Can They Do at Camp?
Though academics are at the heart of SCATS, emphasis is also placed on the social
aspects of camp. Campers participate in a wide range of activities, many of which
are created by their counselors, most of whom are college students who attended SCATS
themselves. Whether they are competing in Ultimate Frisbee, making friendship bracelets,
eating at cookouts, or playing capture the flag, campers come together as a community
where everyone is accepted and learning is celebrated.
What are the qualifications?
To apply for SCATS, students must:
- Be nominated by a teacher, a counselor, or a principal.
- Complete grade 6, 7, or 8 by the end of the 2024-2025 school year.
- Show high interest/achievement in one or more content areas.
In addition, students must:
- Be eligible for services as a gifted child OR
- Have an IQ score of 125 or above OR
- Have a score at or above the 90th percentile on the total battery OR
- Have a score at or above the 95th percentile on the total mathematics or language arts/reading section of the most recent achievement test OR
- Have scored at the distinguished level on performance assessment measures
If your child does not meet above requirements but you believe SCATS is the right opportunity for your child or if you have any questions about eligibility, please call us at (270) 745-6323. We would be happy to talk with you.
Both my girls went, and I also went to SCATS. The experience was invaluable for us all.
I like all my classes — I thought it was going to be just like school, but it’s more fun because they don’t teach the usual way. It’s more hands-on.
Cost
- A $200 deposit is due with completed application.
- Full tuition of $2,600 for residential campers and $1,200 for nonresidential campers must be paid by May 15, 2025.
- Needs-based financial assistance is available.
Experience