Gifted & Talented Identification Process

If you believe your child may qualify for gifted services, we invite you to submit a referral to our school.

Under Colorado law, all public schools identify and serve gifted students ages 5 to 21. While Douglas County School District automatically screens students using the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) in 3rd grade and at the end of elementary school (5th or 6th grade), students may be identified for gifted services at any time.

Referrals can be made by a parent, teacher, or specialist. To refer your child: Open the Gifted Referral Form (DCSD Gifted & Talented Referral Form).

Submitting a referral for gifted identification does not guarantee additional cognitive or achievement testing. The identification team will review the referral alongside existing student data to determine the appropriate next steps, which may or may not involve further assessment.

Per Colorado law, the team has 30 school days from receiving the referral to review the file and communicate next steps to parents, students, and teachers. This 30-day window is a deadline to provide an action plan, not necessarily a final identification decision.

For further information on the Gifted Identification Process, please contact Hillary Fendrich at hfendrich@dcsdk12.org, please visit the Colorado Department of Education's Gifted Identification Guidebook, or please visit the Colorado Department of Education's Gifted Identification education family page.

Below is the gifted identification process.