Redmond High School (RHS) hosted its second annual B-division invitational this month for teams of students across the country. More than 550 students from 38 middle school teams across the country participated in this event.
Accelerated Programs

CogAT screening
Due to issues related to the Covid-19 pandemic, including continuously changing health and safety environment guidelines, in-person assessments will not be administered this year. Instead, we are moving to remote online testing for the current eligibility cycle. As part of the eligibility screening process, the CogAT screener will be administered in January 2021. Below is an overview of the CogAT screener for all applicants, as well as LWSD 1st grade students.
- All assessments given online (similar to SBA)
- Universal screening for current LWSD 1st graders (January 2021) administered remotely by classroom teachers using Teams. Elementary sites determine specific dates within the screening window.
- 2020-21 Applicants screening – tentative dates below
- Private/home school students – January 2021
- LWSD students in 5th grade applicants – January 2021
- LWSD students in 6th and 7th grade applicants – January 2021
- LWSD students in K, 2-4 applicants – January 2021
Families will be sent information via email specific to their student’s test event including date, time, and technology requirements for completing the assessment.
Students who meet the screening criteria will receive email notification from the Accelerated Programs Department regarding next steps in the eligibility process. Notifications are anticipated to be emailed to families two to three weeks after screening is complete. The quest@lwsd.org email address continues to be the most efficient method of communication with our department.
Update regarding the highly capable application process for the 2021-22 school year
The application window for highly capable services closed on November 30, 2020 at 4:30 p.m. after being open for almost six weeks. We do not accept late applications. Families are encouraged to apply in the fall of 2021 if they are still interested in the highly capable services. Between the application deadline and the actual testing there is a large amount of document processing and scheduling that occurs. The testing company also has deadlines we need to adhere to in order for testing to be completed prior to moving on to the second round of testing.
As with all things across the district, COVID-19 has required us to make several changes to our normal practices, one example would be the application window. We were not able to set up specific dates for assessments as the company that provides our assessments did not have a remote option ready for use at the beginning of the school year. We postponed our application window until we were sure we would be able to complete the assessments and eligibility given the current remote requirements.
Due to the delay, we chose to increase the application window from twenty days to six weeks. During that time, we posted information in the local online newspapers, added information to all of the district webpage banners, included information in the bimonthly parent communication newsletter, and updated our webpage regularly as our plans continued to solidify. Families that reached out to the Accelerated Programs department for information and updates were continuously encouraged to check our webpage for the most current information.
To date, we have scheduled all LWSD first grade students to take the CogAT screener in January and families have been notified of assigned date and time. We will continue to schedule screening for private school and LWSD kindergarten, and second thru fourth grade students. Please watch your email for more information.
Lake Washington School District provides accelerated academic programs for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. These programs are designed to meet the learning styles and needs of students with exceptional intellectual, academic, and creative abilities.
- Early Entrance to Kindergarten
- Kindergarten Highly Capable Services
- K5HC - Grades K-5
- First - Fifth Grade Highly Capable Services
- K5HC - Grades K-5
- Pull-out Quest - Grades 2-5
- Full-time Quest - Grades 2-5
- Middle School Highly Capable Services
- Middle School Quest - Grades 6-8
- High School Highly Capable Services
Contact Accelerated Programs
Phone: 425-936-1238
Fax: 425-936-1325
Department email: quest@lwsd.org
Website: lwsd.org/HCP
Accelerated Programs Staff
Becky Kadrmas, Director
Janette Cimburek, Administrative Supervisor
Amanda Olson, Administrative Professional
Jennifer Rusch, Administrative Professional
Britt Galen, Accelerated Programs Psychologist
Crystal Batlle, Instructional Specialist
Mailing address:
Lake Washington School District
Accelerated Programs Office
P.O. Box 97039
Redmond, WA 98073
Location:
Lake Washington School District Resource Center
16250 N.E. 74th Street
Redmond, WA 98052
For a complete list of Accelerated Programs staff, please visit the Highly Capable Programs Staff Directory.
Gifted Education Advisory Council (GEAC)
Gifted Education Advisory Council is a parent-led committee that supports the gifted education program in Lake Washington School District.