For nineteen years, the Wisconsin Center for Academically Talented Youth (WCATY) has been the only statewide, year-round organization in Wisconsin dedicated to serving gifted students. WCATY’s mission is to nurture Wisconsin’s most academically talented students by providing and encouraging programs that support, motivate, and challenge. WCATY uses multiple outcome measures, student and faculty evaluations, parent input, and research-based practices to maintain an overriding focus on quality.

Access to programs and opportunities is a cornerstone of WCATY values. WCATY strives to offer programs throughout the rural, urban, and suburban communities of Wisconsin. The Academy (District Co-ops) partners with over 100 public and private school districts, bringing challenging curriculum to students where gifted educational resources are scarce. In 2010, summer program students came from 80 different Wisconsin communities and 8 different states. Access to programs also means a WCATY commitment to providing scholarships and fee waivers for bright students who need support. Talent exists among all groups, and WCATY is dedicated to identifying and serving a broad and diverse pool of students in communities throughout the state.

Explore WCATY Programs

• The Academy (formerly called District Co-ops) uses innovative online curriculum to provide advanced coursework for middle school students.


• The Accelerated Learning Program (ALP) brought WCATY's first rigorous academic programming to the state in 1992. This three-week summer camp provides a collegiate setting in which high school students examine one subject in great depth.


• The Summer Transitional Enrichment Program (STEP) is an exciting two-week summer camp where middle school students explore unusual subjects.


• Serving WCATY's youngest students, the Young Students Summer Program (YSSP) provides a challenge for elementary students in a nurturing summer camp setting.

Apply for a WCATY program today, and see how students explore—belong—and excel.