Travel Details Students attending the Mexico sites need to obtain a passport and complete appropriate travel documents which will be detailed after registration. Students are responsible for booking their travel. Flights to both Mexico sites are available from most international airports. CTY staff will meet students who have requested Shuttle Service at the Monterrey (MTY), Mexico City (MEX) or Puebla (PBC) airports and accompany them to the sites on a shuttle bus. This service costs $60. More detailed information about travel will be sent to families in site packets.
Working with a Child who is Reluctant to Attend Many first-time students are apprehensive about attending. They may feel unsure about being away from home for three weeks (especially in a foreign country) or about spending so much of their summer on academics. This puts parents in a difficult position. There is a fine line between encouraging children to overcome normal apprehension about a new experience and forcing them into a situation for which they are not yet ready. Although many initially anxious students later report being grateful that their parents encouraged them to attend, we do not recommend sending a very reluctant child to the program.
Supporting Your Child We believe that parents are a vital component of a successful summer. Often, both the demanding nature of the academic program and the residential setting are new to students. We encourage you, well in advance of the session, to discuss with summer programs staff any issues that may affect your child's experience in the classroom or residence hall. Keep in mind that issues that have not been significant in regular school could be in the summer program setting. During the summer we encourage parents to call site administrators if a child is encountering difficulties so that we may work together to help the student. back to top
Homesick Students Being away from home, especially for the first time, can be difficult for some students, so we make every effort to create a supportive environment. Site administrators are trained to help students who are having trouble adjusting to life in the program. If your child becomes homesick, be sure to contact a site administrator for ideas on helping your child adapt to the new environment. Please give your child a few days to become comfortable in the program; nearly all students who initially experience homesickness ultimately succeed at and enjoy their summer experience.
Students with Learning, Physical, or Medical Disabilities Open communication between CTY and parents is essential to meeting students' needs. If your child has a learning, physical, or medical disability, you must contact summer programs staff at 410-735-6215 to discuss those needs in the context of the academic, social, and residential aspects of the CTY program. You must call this number every year, even if your child received accommodations in a past CTY program (summer or other), and even if your child was evaluated by CTY's Diagnostic and Counseling Center. Information of this nature is privileged and is not shared between departments at CTY without your written release. CTY is committed to providing reasonable, appropriate, and necessary accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. A person with a disability is defined by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 as an individual who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a record of such an impairment, or is regarded as having an impairment. In order for reasonable accommodations to be provided, current documentation from a qualified individual knowledgeable about the student's particular disability must be submitted to our office for review by May 15 or earlier. Requests made outside of this timeline may adversely affect our ability to provide accommodations and in certain circumstances may prevent a child from participating in our program. A current medical evaluation must be submitted if the disability is a medical condition, hearing impairment, or visual impairment. A current psychological or neuropsychological evaluation must be submitted if the disability is a learning disability, ADD/ADHD, non-verbal learning disorder, developmental disorder (including Asperger's Syndrome), or social/emotional issue such as depression. Because IEPs are contracts with individual school systems, they cannot serve as the sole piece of documentation. However, IEPs may be helpful in combination with the medical or psychological evaluation. Further guidelines on documentation can be found at www.jhuaa.org. Costs for personal attendants, personally prescribed devices, or services which involve travel and other expenses are the responsibility of the student's family. All students on medication should continue to take their medication during the program as prescribed by their physicians.
Research
As part of Johns Hopkins University, the Center for Talented Youth is a member of a research community. To fulfill that commitment, we often ask parents and students to join us in important research efforts. Students or parents who are asked to participate in a research project will be provided with a description of the study if requested. When the study is completed, our Research Department will, upon request, provide a general summary of the research results and reprints of published articles. back to top | 
