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Opportunities for Gifted Children
When flying into Chicago, sometimes I take a “ride share” taxi to get downtown. It’s about half the cost and involves waiting around five minutes until the taxi arrangers can find two other people going the same direction who are willing to share the cab. I did this last week. I was sitting in the backseat when the door opened and in entered a very good-looking African-American man, wearing a handsome navy suit and spit-polished shoes. He was very friendly and introduced himself as Lyndon. After saying “hello,” he immediately started working on his Blackberry, alternating the reading of email with making business calls. This went on for ten or fifteen minutes with him moving very quickly from one matter to the next. I grew exhausted just watching and listening to him.
Somewhere along the line, he stopped working and we started a conversation. I was fascinated by his story because it fit so well with the area of gifted education.
Lyndon grew up in a small, poor town in Texas. His parents did not have opportunities to go to college, and I’m not even sure they finished high school. Lyndon’s parents were only teenagers when he was born--too young, thought his grandparents--so he was initially raised by the older relatives.
In elementary school, Lyndon was hyperactive and always talking. According to Lyndon’s point-of-view, this caused him to be placed in a resource room for children with learning disabilities. He felt stigmatized. Somewhere a long the line, he had a teacher (we’ll call her Mrs. Johnson) who looked at him differently. She saw his strengths, not his constant distracting chatter. One day she pulled him aside and said to him, “I’m going to call your mother tonight. I can tell you’re a smart boy and I want to have you tested.” Through the advocacy of Mrs. Johnson, Lyndon was tested and found to be very bright and was placed in a magnet program for gifted students. Suddenly he saw possibilities outside his immediate environment. He skipped one grade in elementary school while in this magnet program.
When he was in middle school, Lyndon was invited to attend a special program on the East Coast for bright, under-privileged students. This led to him receiving a scholarship for a prep school for two years. I asked Lyndon how his parents felt about him going away to school. He said that he thought it was difficult for his mother, but his father was very supportive. When his father was in the military, he saw that there was “another world out there” and wanted to give his son the opportunity to experience that.
After some time, Lyndon missed his friends back home and decided to finish his final years at his old high school. When he returned to that school, he skipped yet another grade.
Lyndon went on to attend Brown University and then got a graduate degree at The University of Chicago. He is now a very successful business executive. All this happened because he was shown the possibilities of a different life and he had adults who made sure those possibilities could take place.
Lyndon is now married and has two preschoolers. Because of his experiences, he realizes that doors can be opened when one is exposed to the possibilities in life. He is making a concerted effort to give his children even more exposure than he had. He wants them to know many different types of people. He has them in an environment where they are already speaking two languages. He exposes them to lots of books and provides many enriching experiences.
Lyndon told me that he did some volunteer work recently with kids at Cabrini Green. The young people were shocked to see the car he was driving. They said it was the first time they had ever met an African American driving a Mercedes Benz who wasn’t a drug dealer.
By the way, Mrs. Johnson, the teacher who recognized Lyndon’s talents, still remains in his life. She was one of those special teachers who stayed in touch and was a guiding force. Mrs. Johnson “made a difference.” She attended his graduations from high school, college, and graduate school. She attended his wedding and the birthday parties of his children. She is a “part of his family” and very valued individual.
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