Old Donation Center School

Old Donation Center for the gifted and talented, or ODC as it is most commonly known is the gifted academy for academics, art and dance in Virginia Beach. The academics portion is grade 2^nd to 5^th and this is their home school. The gifted art and dance are pulled of their home school one day a week and attend classes the entire day at ODC. My daughter attends the dance academy and loves it.
Applications to attend are distributed in late fall and due in February. Two test are given to attend at the academic level and it is extremely competitive. As well teacher recommendations are part of the process. At the art and dance level either pieces of work, or an audition take place. As well, teacher recommendations.
The entire staff is very caring and nourishing of their students. As an example this year I have already got a few emails from my daughter’s teacher just to say that she enjoys having her and loves her smile during the day. Everything about the school is geared toward the gifts that students posses and letting them explore those talents to the full extent their ability.
Why the four stars you may ask. One reason only… and it’s the building itself which is in dire need of a tear down. However, the new ODC and Kempslanding (gifted middle school) are going to be constructed Summer of 2014. They will be built together to create a campus for Virginia Beach gifted students 2^nd thru 8^th with 225,000 sq ft of space. It will be built on the same grounds as the current ODC. It’s projected cost is over 63 million and expected completion date is 2017. Here is a link to the schematic design of this incredible building and grounds. Click on schematics.
I am a proud parent of an ODC student and proud of the city for supporting these students. The new facility will be a crowning jewel for not only the city, but the state of Virginia. If you are interested in these programs for your child follow up with your child’s home school in Virginia Beach, or contact ODC directly for information.