Of the 33 seventh-graders from Dripping Springs Middle School who took either the SAT or ACT exam as part of the annual Duke Talent Identification Program (TIP) Seventh-Grade Talent Search, 15 were recognized for their high level of achievement. Academically talented students across the United States who have scored in the 95th percentile on a grade-level achievement test – such as the TAKS or STAAR assessments – are invited to participate in the Duke program.
Ethaniel Diaz and Dominic Gearing were awarded “Grand” or national recognition, which means they scored equal or better than 90 percent of college-bound seniors who took the test. In addition, 13 seventh-graders received state recognition, which means they earned scores equal to or better than half of the college-bound seniors who took the tests. They are: Ainsley Ballard, Karsten Bobb, Evelyn Bristol, Kalea Caldwell, Riley Dienna, Grayson Dunham, Alessandra Grijalva, Daniel Hearne, Ramsey Hutton, Kenneth Melton, James Mihic, Anton Miller-Thomas, and Arysta Visser.
Eight of those students – Ballard, Caldwell, Diaz, Dienna, Dunham, Gearing, Melton, Mihic, and Miller-Thomas – scored among the top 15 percent of students who participated in the program, which qualified them for the Duke TIP Center for Summer Studies. Eight others – Bobb, Bristol, Jesus Gonzalez-Albejar, Grijalva, Hearne, Hutton, Madison Prather, and Visser– qualified for the Duke TIP Academy for Summer Studies.
