Any other CTYers out there? I was involved from, oh, 1993-1996 or something like that. Talk about a life changing experience.
Oh, for those of you who don’t know what this is about, it’s the Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth program (now IAAY I think… Institute for the Academic Advancement of Youth). They get you to take the SATs at the end of 6th grade and if you get above a certain score you can sign up for their summer program. It’s basically a 3.5 week class offered at 6 or 7 different locations (most on the East Coast, USA). There are a wide variety to choose from (you can only take one each session), and you’re in class for 5 hours every day. You can often get high school credit for a lot of the courses. The rest of the time there are organized and unorganized activities and such, you live on a college campus, and generally have a great time meeting other geeks and learning that maybe you’re not so odd after all.
Anyone, anyone? (I hope this is the right forum for this… kind of a poll I guess to see who else has been through this program).
I took the test and qualified, but never went to the summer programs. I didn’t realize at the time what they were (neither did my parents). Looking back it’s one of those things where you go, “Why didn’t I DO THAT???” Everyone I’ve met that went to a CTY camp had a life changing experience there.
Well, at least they changed the name. I wasn’t involved in it, but when I arrived at the hop for college in 1975, it was the Scientifically, Intellectually, Mathematically Precocious Youth program, or SIMPY.
I never went to the summer programs because we couldn’t afford it. I went to a couple of weekend symposium things - one in quantum mechanics and the other, I forget what it was about. Even just the weekend program was expensive enough that it was the only vacation we went on all year.
A former CTYer here – I was at Skidmore in '95 and '96 and at the sister program, CTYI, in Ireland in '97. You’re right, Eonwe, CTY was definitely a life changing experience. I wish I had kept in better touch with some of the people I met there.
Serendipity, I was at Skidmore then as well… I was at Hampshire my first year, but then they didn’t do the program there again and so went to Skidmore for the last three years I was involved. Hey, maybe I’m one of the people you met there… what classes did you take?
I did Young Students in 1992-3 and the regular one 1994-6. It was an awesome experience which was good for me in a lot of ways - I wasn’t the freakish walking dictionary like I was to my classmates, I got to learn really cool stuff, and I was the only religious Jewish person around, which meant that I interacted with non-religious Jewish kids for once. I’m thinking of being a lab assistant this summer, since I don’t want to work the whole summer but would like a short term job.
I took Writing I with Keith Danner in 1995, Writing and Society with Ann Green in 1996 (session one), and Logic with James Meacham in 1996 (session two).
My brother, actually, did CTY this past year. I think he did something similar the year before at Washington College or somesuch. I wasn’t there, I don’t remember the details, only that he was away for two weeks:D
I almost did the instructor thing for it this summer (a friend of mine did, at GWU I think) and I’m considering doing it this summer. I went to some of these programs, I don’t htink this exact one, when I was a kid and I loved it. Only kid on my block to go to Math Camp.
Anyway, we’ll see if I get to twist impressionable young minds this summer or not.
I took that writing class in '94! Keith was awesome! This is so exciting for me. It’s wierd, but I feel a strong affinity to anyone who has been involved in the program (although I am only in contact with 1 person I met there, and she lives only 20 minutes away from me). I kind of feel like it’s some sort of fraternity or secret order.
The first rule about CTY is: don’t talk about CTY.
Eonwe, talk more about the teachers/people you met in 1993. I believe my wife was at Johns Hopkins CTY in '93.
(But she was a commuter [i.e., didn’t sleep in the dorm] so you may not have known her…) I’ll get her to post here later on today.
We were just talking about CTY last night. She pointed out that on almost any college campus or even on the street, wearing a “CTY” t-shirt will cause random people to stop and ask you what year and location you were in.
For the record, my dad was too cheap for any of this. Instead I was sent to Jewish kids’ camp as a young boy, which turned me first into an atheist and then into a Mormon.
PublicBlast,
Well, there are a bunch of different universities that host the Johns Hopkins CTY program (JH being one of them). In '93 I was at Hampshire College (the last year they hosted the program). I took an etymology class (that’s word origins, not entymology, which is the study of bugs). Was she at Hampshire then? If so I’d be more than happy to blather on about my memories and friends from that year, but I don’t want to bore you all if it’s not going to be applicable.
And you know, I always figured that when I got to college that some random person would see my CTY t-shirt and say, “hey, I did that too,” (in my imagination this person is also female and incredably attractive), but so far this has not happened.
And yeah, it is really expensive. They had two sessions a summer, and some people would do both, which is like 3+ thousand dollars (or was when I was in the program).
I didn’t realize at the time what they were (neither did my parents). Looking back it’s one of those things where you go, “Why didn’t I DO THAT???” Everyone I’ve met that went to a CTY camp had a life changing experience there.
