Miller Middle School students selected for the Blank Summer Institute are pictured. Front row, from left, Gaby Perez Gonzalez and Donovan Gavagan. Back row, Avy Smith, Trevor Ketcham (alternate) and Zach Swartz (alternate).
Three Miller Middle School students were selected for the prestigious Blank Summer Institute for Arts and Sciences with two students selected as alternates.
Miller students selected for the extended learning summer program were Avy Smith in social sciences, Donovan Gavagan in performing arts and Gaby Perez Gonzalez in creative writing. Two alternates from Miller are Zach Swartz in math and Trevor Ketcham in science.
The Blank Summer Institute for Arts and Sciences is a weeklong residential program at the Belin-Blank Center at the University of Iowa with advanced educational opportunities. Only 15 students in the state are selected in each category.
Students are selected based on teacher nominations, test scores, an essay and a portfolio, said Miller Counselor John Augustine.
This year’s institute will be held from June 27 to July 1. It will feature 120 of Iowa’s gifted students in grades 7 and 8.
