WKU News

June 23, 2026 (Bowling Green, KY) -- The Center for Gifted Studies at WKU hosted 100 campers for the 44th annual Summer Camp for Academically Talented Middle School Students (SCATS). Camp ran from June 7 to 19.

Located on the campus of WKU, SCATS provides enhanced learning opportunities for academically talented rising seventh, eighth, and ninth-grade students.

Throughout the two weeks, young people from across the Commonwealth of Kentucky, six other states (Colorado, Indiana, Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia), and one student from China, participated in 22 engaging courses.

Students attended four classes daily at the two-week camp. The Center offered a diverse curriculum encompassing music, science, art, math, history and acting with classes including Aviation, Culinary Chemistry, Evolution of Popular American Music, Extreme Weather: Patterns and Natural Hazards, Scale Modeling with Architecture and Math, and more.

Outside the classroom, residential campers participated in a variety of engaging activities, such as sports matches, a talent show, and paper theater.

“SCATS is a summer tradition at WKU, bringing middle school students to campus from across Kentucky and beyond. The experience is known for the advanced, minds-on learning as well as opportunities for making friends while enjoying a variety of activities,” said Julia Link Roberts, executive director of The Center for Gifted Studies.

The application for the 45th year of SCATS in 2027 will be available on The Center for Gifted Studies Website.

To see pictures visit our Flickr page and blog posts from SCATS, visit the camp blog at: https://gifted-studies.com.

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 parents 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 about SCATS 2026 or to be placed on the mailing list for SCATS 2027, please contact Tyler Clark at (270) 745-6323 or thomas.clark@wku.edu.