WKU News

February 4, 2025 (Bowling Green, KY) - Julia Link Roberts, Mahurin Professor of Gifted Studies at Western Kentucky University, was elected to serve as chair of the Kentucky Advisory Council for Gifted and Talented Education. This nineteen-person Council is appointed by the Governor. The Advisory Council meets four times a year to advise staff at the Kentucky Department of Education regarding Kentucky’s children and young people who are gifted and talented and their education. Other officers elected include Vice Chair, Hannah England of Russell County, and Secretary, Lindsay Burton of Garrard County.

“Working with the Kentucky Advisory Council for Gifted and Talented Education is an honor,” Dr. Roberts said. “I appreciate opportunities to collaborate with others while setting priorities for gifted education in the Commonwealth.”

Dr. Roberts is the Executive Director of The Center for Gifted Studies and The Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science. She is a member of the faculty at the School of Teacher Education, and she is a WKU Distinguished Professor. Dr. Roberts serves on the boards of The Association for The Gifted (a division of the Council for Exceptional Children), the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, the Kentucky Association for Gifted Education, and Aviation Heritage Park and Museum. She is the immediate past president of the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children.

More About The Center for Gifted Studies
Located on the Western Kentucky University campus in Bowling Green, Kentucky, The Center for Gifted Studies has been serving children who are gifted and talented, their educators, and their parents for more than 40 years. The Center provides exciting educational opportunities for gifted young people, rigorous professional development for teachers, and support for families of gifted young people. Under the direction of Dr. Julia Roberts, The Center has become one of the preeminent advocates for gifted education in the United States.

For more information, contact Julia Roberts at (270) 745-6323 or julia.roberts@wku.edu.