GVSU Education Programs News
MiLEAP grant fuels continued partnership between GVSU and Detroit Public Schools to advance gifted education
February 25, 2026
[Image: Dr. Kelly Margot works with children using a Van de Graaf generator, provided by the GVSU Physics Department.]
When Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) set out to expand and reimagine gifted education, it found a committed partner in Dr. Kelly Margot, Associate Professor of Teaching and Learning, whose work over the past several years has helped reshape opportunities for high-ability students across the city.
“In spring 2022, as co-Principal Investigator, with an audacious and hopeful spirit, we wrote a federal grant (Javits) to provide over $2.5 million to expand DPSCD’s gifted programming,” Margot said. The project, titled A Matter of Equity, was awarded in September 2022 and marked a historic milestone as the only federal Javits grant ever awarded in Michigan. “Thus began the exciting work that will forever be the crowning glory of my career.”
Through the Javits grant, Margot and her team partnered closely with DPSCD to bring the district’s bold vision for gifted education to life. That vision included universal screening and equitable identification of students for Gifted and Talented Education (GATE), comprehensive professional development for teachers and ancillary staff, and the launch of monthly family and community outreach meetings focused on gifted education.
“The impact has been felt by the district, community, and students,” Margot said. She credits Grand Valley for standing firmly behind the work. “GVSU has provided me with a level of support and care that is unsurpassed in academia. It brings tears to my eyes to think of all of my colleagues that have offered to be thought partners, made phone calls or emails, and even sacrificed time and money to provide DPSCD and me with needed resources.”
Although the federal Javits grant was discontinued in September 2025, the partnership and momentum did not stop. With support from the Office of Sponsored Programs, Margot secured a $582,000 state grant in fall 2024 to provide after-school gifted STEAM programming to newly identified students at eight Detroit elementary schools. That work has now expanded even further.
The newly awarded $431,840 grant from the Michigan Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP) will fund the continuation and expansion of the project, titled “Full STEAM Ahead with GATE,” from January through September 2026. With this latest award, the program will now serve 12 elementary campuses in Detroit.
“Students are flourishing in these sessions after school,” Margot said. “A visit to one of the campuses feels remarkable as you watch students build a new robot, learn to code, or maybe express their social/emotional growth through an art project.”
In addition to after-school programming, the partnership has launched “Super Saturdays,” where gifted students explore topics of their choosing in depth with experts in the field. Margot recalled a recent session led by Babasola Fateye, a professor of Biomedical Sciences at GVSU, who worked with Detroit students on using insects to model, predict, and measure the impact of environmental chemicals on humans. “It was awe-inspiring to see him work with young students interested in learning more about the topic,” she said.
MiLEAP funding will also support summer enrichment programming for GATE-identified K–12 students across the district, ensuring that advanced academic and creative opportunities extend beyond the traditional school year.
For DPSCD leaders, the impact of the partnership has been transformative. “Historically, Detroit Public Schools Community District has offered limited opportunities for high ability students,” said Dr. Valeria Jackson, Senior Director of Gifted and Talented Education at DPSCD. “The DPSCD Javits grant award in 2022 was a crucial win for Detroit’s high ability children.”
With the grant funding, she noted, DPSCD has launched “a sustainable gifted education program leading with universal screening and equitable identification, high-quality, comprehensive gifted training for teachers who will teach classes with gifted clusters, [and] an array of programming services that included after-school talent development that meet the needs of high-potential 1st–4th grade students.” The initiative also supports summer enrichment, Super Saturdays, and specialized training to better serve twice-exceptional students. “Our Javits funded Gifted and Talented Education program is making a measurable impact on Detroit’s children and changing the trajectory of student outcomes,” Jackson said.
The work is also contributing to a growing body of research. Margot and her colleagues currently have five manuscripts in publication and recently established a new data-sharing agreement between DPSCD and GVSU that will allow for in-depth, student-level academic achievement research on the effects of gifted programming in the district.
“I am proud of our system for identifying GATE students in DPSCD,” Margot said. “We believe it is the best identification system in the country.” In March, her team will travel to Washington, D.C., to share the story with members of Congress in hopes of securing future federal Javits support.
Margot’s leadership extends statewide as well. As president-elect of the Michigan Association for Gifted Children, she is working to advocate for legislation that would strengthen gifted education programs across Michigan.
For Margot, the heart of the work remains rooted in partnership and possibility. “Students are flourishing,” she said. “When you see them engaged, confident, and excited about learning, you are reminded exactly why this work matters.”