Joseph Baldwin Academy

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Joseph Baldwin statue on the Truman State University campus
Joseph Baldwin statue on the Truman State University campus

The Joseph Baldwin Academy for Eminent Young Scholars is a summer institute for gifted students of approximately junior high school age, operated by Truman State University in Kirksville, Missouri since 1985. The academy was named for Joseph Baldwin, pioneer educator and founder of the University, and founded for the purpose of providing a simulated experience of college, and particularly of the liberal arts at a critical point during students’ development, when normative school curricula might strike them as insufficiently challenging.[1] The inaugural academy seated 60 students in four courses; recent offerings included two sessions, each with ten courses for approximately 200 pupils. JBA students typically represent the top 1-5% of their classes, as measured by class rank and scores on such nationally-normed instruments as the ACT; nomination by school counselor or principal is required.[2] The majority of students come from Missouri and contiguous states, though nearly all states have been represented.

Each session lasts for three weeks, during which students take a single, college level course, meeting from 9 am until 4pm (with a half-day on Saturday).[3] The norms of the academy require that courses be at least as difficult as those typically taken by first-year college students, and content approximates that of a semester-long course. [4]

The academy encourages students to explore academic questions and areas not typically available in the students’ high schools, and for that reason, generally does not offer courses that can be applied towards students’ curricula, either for high school or for college, nor are students encouraged to think of their work in the academy as a mere means of accelerating progress through graduation requirements.[5] While there is greater supervision and structured recreation than most college students experience, students live and eat in dormitories, and have the same access to university services (including libraries, computing centers and exercise facilities) as college students. The academy also provides a rich variety of recreational opportunities, including water olympics, dodgeball tournaments, quizbowl, and local excursions.

Class offerings are distributed across the arts, humanities, social sciences, life sciences and physical sciences. However, most courses are interdisciplinary, and are taught by university professors. Offerings in the past have included courses in medievalism, field ecology, experimental physiology, criminology, ethnomusicology, forensic statistics, environmental chemistry, folklore and equine science, as well as challenging courses in languages less likely to be available in high school, such as Russian, Italian and Latin, specialized offerings in history, drawing, acting, mathematics, literature, and many other areas.[6] Courses frequently involve field trips, which in the past have included archaeological digs, Native American powows, overnight excursions to libraries, museums and theatrical performances in distant cities, and even trips to Europe and the Soviet Union.

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.dirjournal.com/joseph-baldwin-academy-link-9111.html
  2. ^ Joseph Baldwin Academy for Eminent Young Scholars
  3. ^ Joseph Baldwin Academy - Truman State University
  4. ^ Joseph Baldwin Academy - Truman State University
  5. ^ Joseph Baldwin Academy - Truman State University
  6. ^ http://jba.truman.edu/courses.stm /

[edit] External links