ABSTRACT
In this introductory chapter, the editors provide an overarching description of Promoting PLACE in Rural Schools, a five-year U.S. Department of Education Jacob K. Javits grant focusing on supporting gifted education in rural schools. Achievement and opportunity gaps persist for rural students in terms of identification processes and programmatic choices in gifted education. The goals and aims of Promoting PLACE were designed to mitigate these challenges by developing and implementing alternative identification processes and place-based curricula at appropriate levels of challenge and engagement for rural gifted students. The chapter includes an overview of the grant’s five goals related to increasing the number of identified gifted students; developing place-based curricula; implementing interventions designed to support rural learners; and increasing student engagement, achievement in language arts, and self-efficacy. The chapter provides the “big picture” and serves as a reference point for subsequent chapters.
