| Conference News \ |
You Wish You had been There to Hear the 2007 Keynote Speech
"Nurturing Hope in Gifted Children:
Preparation for an ever changing world":
Dr. F. Richard Olenchak serves as Professor, Psychologist, and Co-Director of the Urban
Talent Research Institute at the University of Houston. Joining the faculty at U of H in 1998, he
was previously Chair of Special Education as well as Director of Teacher Education at the
University of Alabama for eleven years.
Originally from Virginia, he graduated from the University for Michigan, later earning advanced
degrees in Educational Leadership from Eastern Michigan University and in Psychology from
Arizona State University. His Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, emphasizing Giftedness and
Talent Development, was completed at the University of Connecticut. He later completed a
post-doctoral internship in Psychology through the University of Alabama at a secure
medical facility for adolescents.
Having taught grades 2 through 11, including teaching at a specialized school for gifted
students, Dr. Olenchak has served as a K-12 Director of Gifted Education in two school
districts, as well as director of two Federal grants in gifted education. In addition, he has
been principal at both elementary and middle school levels, a training specialist for a
corporation interested in developing executive talent, a research associate at a state
department of education, and has operated a private psychological consulting practice
focusing on the developmental needs of gifted and talented children.
Currently serving as Immediate Past-President of the National Association for Gifted
Children (NAGC), Rick has also served as NAGC Research Editor, in various leadership roles
in NAGC Divisions, as President of the International Future Problem Solving Program (FPSP),
as President for the Association for the Education of Gifted Underachieving Students (AEGUS),
and as Chair of the Research and Development Division of the Texas Association for Gifted
and Talented (TAGT).
In addition, Rick currently is a member emeritus of the Board of Directors of SENG
(Supporting the Emotional Needs of the Gifted), a foundation that donates funds for
stimulating research and services likely to improve psycho-social development among
gifted individuals.
Publications which he has either authored or co-authored number approximately 100, and
among them is the 2005 book Misdiagnosis and Dual Diagnoses of Gifted Children and Adults,
named as a Must Readby the American Psychological Association in 2006 and ForeWord
magazine’s Psychology Book of the Year in 2005.
Honors associated with gifted education include receiving the John Gowan Doctoral
Student Award from NAGC, the Governor’s Citation Award from the Rhode Island Department
of Education, the Award of Honor from Mexico -- Educacion Especial de Mexico, the Lily
Endowment Teaching Fellow Award, and the Leadership Award for Students with Talents
and Disabilities from the University of Houston.
Contact Dr. Olenchak : ricko@houston.rr.com
2008 Fall Conference —Oct. 24-25— Summersville, WV The theme for the 2008 WVAGT conference is 21st Century Skills. It will be held Friday-Saturday, October 24-25, at the Summersville Armory. Lodging will be at the Comfort Inn which is located within short walking distance. Our keynote speaker will be Marianne Solomon, Executive Director of Future Problem Solving Program International. More details will be available in upcoming issues of AEGIS and at our website. If you know now that you would like to be a presenter, please contact Dana Thomas at dethomas@access.k12.wv.us Ms. Solomon has presented at the World Future Society conference and will teach a strand this summer at the University of Connecticut Confratute, held in July. For more information on Confratute, go to: www.gifted.uconn.edu The Fall Conference is not just for teachers. Please encourage parents, administrators and school psychologist to attend this informative event. 2009 - Blackwater Falls |