Ascent Data Group

NRC/GT at UCONN

The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) at the University of Connecticut was recruiting participants for their study entitled, “What Works in Gifted Education”. The recruiting process involved calling teachers and describing the program to them over the phone. This proved difficult as explaining the details and benefits of the study was generally very time-consuming. And while getting “buy-in” from the teachers was critical – it fell on them to pitch the idea to their superiors (or at least to schedule subsequent calls where administrators could be involved).

We created a stand-alone informational site which explained the details of the study, answers to common questions and benefits to participants. We even included sample curricula and a sign-up form for those interested in the program. This enabled recruiters to focus more on generating interest and less on explaining the mechanics of the study. Teachers could peruse the site at their leisure for more details and – if the time came to pitch the idea to the administration – they could use the site as a sales tool. Interested schools could start the enrollment process immediately right from their web browser.