Florida Member Nathan Georgette Awarded $10,000 as 2008 Davidson Fellow

Recent research by The Thomas B. Fordham Institute concludes that many high-achieving students do not receive the support to reach their full potential. However, 20 young people named as 2008 Davidson Fellows exemplify the extraordinary work that can be achieved by students who are given opportunities to excel.

One of these gifted students is Nathan Georgette, an International Baccalaureate student at Allen D. Nease High School from Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., whose research helps improve the cost effectiveness of vaccine-preventable disease outbreak control. In recognition of his accomplishment, Nathan will be honored as a 2008 Davidson Fellow. All under the age of 18, Davidson Fellows will receive $50,000, $25,000 and $10,000 scholarships from the Davidson Institute for Talent Development, a national nonprofit organization headquartered in Reno, Nevada, that supports profoundly gifted youth.

“We are thrilled to recognize the 2008 Davidson Fellows not only for their incredible projects, but also for the journey they forged to reach this point,” said Bob Davidson, co-founder of the Davidson Institute. “Each year the breadth and depth of Fellows’ accomplishments overwhelm us. With nurturing, gifted students will be among those who will solve the world’s most vexing problems, now and in the future.”

Nathan Georgette, age 17, developed a novel mathematical model intended to reduce the costs of stopping viral disease outbreaks in impoverished nations. He used mathematical modeling to generate a formula with which the minimum number of vaccines needed to stop a measles outbreak can be calculated in real time during the outbreak. His research represents a new approach to understanding the dynamic effects of infectious disease spread and gradual immunization.

While Nathan has made significant strides in the field of science, the 2008 Davidson Fellows can claim important accomplishments that are quite diverse:

  • Created alternative energy from wastewater;
  • Designed a computer model to aid physicians in patient diagnosis;
  • Invented a new solar panel design;
  • Bridged the relevance of classical music to younger generations;
  • Advanced the development of a promising HIV treatment;
  • Improved the mathematics of digital signal representations used in cell phones and music players; and
  • Discovered a technology to more effectively treat breast cancer.

Each 2008 Davidson Fellow has worked tirelessly to obtain the resources that enable them to make advances in their fields. Unfortunately, not all gifted students get the support they need according to the Fordham Institute’s study, “High Achieving Students in the Era of NCLB” released in June. The findings show that top pupils have “languished” academically. In addition, a national teacher survey found that while most teachers believe all students deserve equal attention, advanced pupils are a lower priority in their schools, receiving dramatically less attention than low-achievers.

“Our goal is to not have any student left behind,” said Jan Davidson, Ph.D., co-founder of the Davidson Institute. “We applaud the tenacity of these and other profoundly gifted children, who often take it upon themselves to gather the resources they need to succeed.”

In addition to creating the Davidson Institute in 1999, Bob and Jan Davidson are co-authors, with Laura Vanderkam, of Genius Denied: How to Stop Wasting Our Brightest Young Minds. In 2006 the Davidsons opened The Davidson Academy of Nevada, a free, public school for profoundly gifted students on the campus of the University of Nevada, Reno. For more information on the Davidson Institute, or to learn more about the 2008 Davidson Fellows, please visit www.DavidsonGifted.org/Fellows.

Congratulation to Nathan, who was also selected as an NSHSS National Scholar Award recipient in 2008.