DALLAS — Megan Howard’s son is the kind of kid who studies trigonometry purely for fun. Yet, despite his advanced aptitude for complex mathematics, he found himself repeatedly avoiding school altogether.
The morning routine became a daily battle of emotional friction. He would get fully dressed, only to stand paralyzed and refuse to leave the family home. When the family car finally pulled up to his public middle school, he would hesitate on the threshold, unable to bring himself to step out into the hallway. Recognizing that the mounting anxiety was unsustainable, his mother ultimately made the difficult decision to pull him out of the traditional system entirely.
Her son, who is diagnosed with autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, experiences no academic friction when it comes to homework or advanced concepts. What was missing from the equation was a fundamental sense of belonging. Among the roughly 1,000 students attending his mainstream public school, Howard said, her son simply needed to find one genuine friend to anchor him.
Her two sons fall into a specialized category known as twice-exceptional learners, a designation for children who are intellectually gifted while simultaneously managing learning differences such as dyslexia, ADHD, or autism. Nationwide, an estimated 360,000 students make up this unique population. For their parents, navigating the educational landscape often means engaging in a frustrating struggle to locate a classroom environment capable of simultaneously catering to a child’s exceptionally high intellect and their complex socioemotional needs.
That persistent gap in the educational marketplace is precisely where specialized private institutions, such as the newly established Sage School of Dallas, step in. It is one of only a handful of schools across the entire country explicitly dedicated to serving this unique subset of students.
"Either you can find a place that has rigorous academics, or you can find a therapy school that is really about social emotional learning," Howard said, reflecting on her exhaustive search. "There was never a place that did both."
Over the past few decades, society’s overall understanding of special education has deepened significantly, accompanied by a notable jump in the number of students who qualify for and receive these critical services. But even with this increased awareness, a pressing question continues to loom over educators, administrators, and families alike: Are modern schools truly equipped to offer the comprehensive support that twice-exceptional learners require?
"Until Sage was around, there wasn’t a school that met all of their needs, so you were always trying to make it work," said Jessica Rall, one of the founders of the Sage School. "These students and families need a place where they don’t just have to make it work."
An Unexpected Combination Within One Person
The term "twice-exceptional learner" has steadily gained traction across educational and psychological circles as more formal research has emerged regarding the group. According to estimates from the National Association for Gifted Children, approximately 6% of all students currently receiving special education services are also recognized as academically gifted.
"It’s a phenomenon," said Jacob Michaelson, a psychiatry and neuroscience professor at the University of Iowa. "There is kind of this unexpected combination within one person of extreme ability in one aspect and extreme disability in another."
Simultaneously, the raw number of students classified with disabilities has shot up across the country, a trend suggesting that modern educators have gotten better at recognizing underlying needs while parents have become more willing to seek out professional support. Historical data illustrates this shift starkly: during the 2014-15 school year, Texas public schools served 451,600 students with disabilities. By the most recent school year, that figure surged to 911,300 students enrolled in specialized education programs.
Despite these broader increases, twice-exceptional learners frequently fly entirely under the radar. Their high intellect routinely masks their underlying learning differences. Because their daily struggles are rarely reflected in standard academic test scores, overworked educators may pay less attention to their subtle vulnerabilities, Michaelson explained.
"You get the impression: Oh my gosh, this person is really smart," he said. "लेकिन that masks the fact that they do have other deficits that are not as apparent."
Even when parents are fully aware that their child is twice-exceptional, they often struggle to figure out the proper educational placement. Do these students belong in a traditional gifted and talented program designed for high achievers? Or do they belong in a specialized education program tailored for learning differences?
Howard had absolute confidence that her oldest son would thrive academically within the rigorous math classes at the School for the Talented and Gifted, a highly competitive magnet school operated by Dallas ISD. However, she harbored deep-seated worries that he would inevitably fall behind socially and emotionally.
Meanwhile, her younger son deals with selective mutism, a complex anxiety disorder that effectively prevents him from speaking in certain social situations. For him, his mother desperately wanted an educational environment structured around smaller, more intimate group interactions.
"Academics was never the issue for my kids," Howard said. "I needed them to go to school more for social reasons."
A Private School Steps In
Kristen Dauphinais deeply relates to the mounting frustrations of parents like Howard. Because her own child is a twice-exceptional learner, she understands firsthand just how difficult it is to find a school capable of simultaneously meeting both academic and socioemotional needs.
That lived frustration is precisely why she helped launch an institution designed to do just that.
"We always joke that, like, these kids just have to cook a little differently," Dauphinais said. "We’re the oven. We built an oven to cook these kids a little differently."
On a quiet October morning inside the school, two high school students hovered intently over a table dotted with worksheets, calculators, and pencils. As part of a hands-on physics lesson, the boys were tasked with constructing a functional projectile launcher. They leaned down together, carefully inspected their makeshift machine, and slipped a small ball into the mechanism.
To their evident excitement, the projectile flew cleanly from the table across the room toward the wall. Even better, the distance it traveled fell just short of their calculated mathematical estimates, prompting an immediate discussion on variables and adjustments.
The instructional model at the school is entirely "inquiry-based," which allows students to explore the specific questions they raise in as much depth as their curiosity demands, according to Mandi Skerbetz, the head of school. To balance the intense intellectual pursuits, the school day systematically concludes with dedicated clubs ranging from chess and Pokémon to Dungeons & Dragons.
Socioemotional learning is not treated as an afterthought; rather, it is intentionally woven directly into the core curriculum, Skerbetz noted. Students participate in structured lessons focused on healthy interpersonal interaction. They actively think through communication strategies, role-play tricky social scenarios, and contemplate practical ways to apply these behavioral lessons to their daily lives outside the classroom.
During that same morning session, one student readily recited back to Skerbetz an acronym the class had deeply analyzed earlier in the month: THINK. Before speaking in a group setting, he explained, he pauses to ask himself a series of guiding questions: Is it true? Is it helpful? Is it inspiring? Is it necessary? Is it kind?
When the school first opened its doors last year, it began with a tiny cohort of just four students. Today, the enrollment has grown to 11 students, supported by four full-time teachers and one part-time educator. The fully accredited institution, which is currently housed inside a local church located in Far North Dallas, serves students ranging from the fifth grade through the 12th grade.
Prospective students must go through a formal application process to gain admission. School leaders carefully evaluate cognitive assessments, academic records, detailed parent reports, student interviews, and campus visits. The cost of attendance is set at $35,000 annually.
How Do Other Schools Serve Twice-Exceptional Students?
Before establishing the Sage School, its founders reached out to the handful of established twice-exceptional schools operating across the country, trading foundational ideas and structural concepts. They identify their "closest aspirational peer" as Bridges Academy, located in Southern California.
When Bridges Academy first launched back in 1994, it started with just three students learning inside the home of its founder. In the decades since, it has expanded significantly into a comprehensive operation serving 200 students, complete with a dedicated physical campus, an online school, a research center, and a media site.
However, Mark Long, the head of school at Bridges Academy, has observed that modern terminology surrounding the community—such as "twice-exceptionality" and "neurodiversity"—is being utilized with much greater frequency today than in the past.
"There’s an understanding around what it is," he noted. "There might not be an understanding of what to do with it, but there’s an awareness."
The college-preparatory school’s curriculum is intentionally designed to remain flexible, Long explained. For instance, rather than forcing a student to produce a traditional 2,000-word essay to demonstrate mastery, the school might allow that same student to deliver a comprehensive oral presentation or produce an instructional film. Much like the model at the Sage School, Bridges Academy intentionally blocks out designated time during the daily schedule to help students actively develop essential social skills, including teamwork and public speaking.
Naturally, this specialized model also carries a steep financial cost. Annual tuition at Bridges Academy runs roughly $61,200 for its in-person campus and approximately $37,500 for its online program.
Long emphasizes, however, that high tuition rates should not mean that families who lack financial means are completely boxed out of receiving guidance.
Bridges Academy actively offers specialized consulting services to both public and private school systems. Long reported that the institution is consistently "inundated" with inquiries as school districts from coast to coast scramble to figure out how to better serve twice-exceptional learners within their own boundaries.
Meanwhile, public school systems have also made measurable strides in recent years. For example, Montgomery County Public Schools, a prominent district in Maryland, is widely recognized for offering some of the most comprehensive services for twice-exceptional learners, including dedicated self-contained classrooms.
Within Texas public schools, twice-exceptional students are legally permitted to participate in advanced gifted and talented programs while simultaneously receiving the specific academic and environmental accommodations outlined in their individualized education programs, commonly known as IEPs. An IEP functions as a legally binding document detailing precisely how a school district intends to meet a child’s unique needs. Under state guidelines regarding the education of gifted and talented youth, Texas educators are also expected to modify standard curricula to support twice-exceptional students adequately.
Several public school districts across North Texas—including Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD and Arlington ISD—have implemented universal screening programs. Universal screening helps districts identify twice-exceptional learners much more effectively because every single student is tested, rather than relying solely on individual referrals initiated by classroom teachers.
"These kids are clever. They’re game-changers," Long said. "We have a moral obligation to make sure that every child across the United States and beyond reaches their potential."
Finding the Dream School
Before finding an alternative, Howard tried various educational routes. She seriously considered homeschooling, enrolled her children in traditional public schools, and even sent one of her sons to a private college preparatory school. For a long time, the concept of a true "dream school" felt entirely nonexistent.
Then, during a routine internet search, she stumbled across the newly formed local campus and decided to take a chance. The Sage School, she realized, appeared to be the exact environment capable of supporting children with profiles like her sons.
Initially, she felt understandable anxiety about pulling her children away from established educational settings to enroll them in a brand-new, unproven school. Furthermore, the high cost of tuition caused severe sticker shock, particularly since the school does not yet offer a formal financial aid program. Howard consulted thoroughly with financial planners to determine if her household could realistically make the math work.
Ultimately, the personal and financial sacrifices were entirely worth it, she said.
When she looks up and sees her oldest son studying advanced calculus, she knows his intellect is being genuinely challenged. When she observes that he has successfully formed real friendships with peers, a profound sense of relief washes over her. And when she watches him advocate for his own needs, she feels an overwhelming sense of pride.
That is precisely why Howard wishes that every student who requires this level of tailored support could have the opportunity to attend a school like Sage.
