Ozarks Profile: Sara Nell Thomas Lampe

What is your job?

"I'm coordinator of gifted education for the Springfield Public Schools and principal of the Phelps Center for the Gifted," Lampe said. "My job is to oversee services provided to gifted children. We serve children in the Springfield Public Schools, and private, parochial and home-schooled children. Springfield has been committed to serving gifted children since 1977."

Tell us about your school.

The Phelps Center and the WINGS (Working with Individual Needs of Gifted Students) program are funded 75 percent by the state and 25 percent by the local school district, Lampe said. "A child's experience in this program is one day a week, so between 800 and 1,000 children come through per week. Gifted children have gifts in the way they think. They think in more abstract terms, they think in more complex ways, and because of that our curriculum addresses that kind of gift."

What prepared you to work with gifted children?

"My mother did it," Lampe said. Eunice Thomas of Cassville taught for 40 years and retired at 71. "They named the elementary school after her," Lampe said. "She's the one that really taught me to teach and respond to the needs of children, moving them forward and believing that all children have a right to learn something new every day they come to school." Lampe believes that "because gifted children don't fit, something else has to happen for them. I really believe that we don't have any idea what gifted kids can do. Sometimes the best thing we can do for them is to get out of their way and to make exceptions to the rules that allow them to progress as rapidly as they can through this thing called school. Gifted kids often go into helping professions because they see a need for us to be a better society. They understand the moral and ethical issues in society. They see the bigger picture. It's wonderful. Even as fine as this program is, we don't even come close to what gifted kids can do."

What is the best part of your job?

"There are really three," Lampe said. "The kids just are mind-boggling and the stimulation is incredible. The second is working with teachers who love gifted kids. We're blessed in this program with teachers who believe that teaching is a calling and not a job. And the third part is the parents. They're phenomenal. They're big gifted kids themselves. They have incredible energy and incredible creativity."

Can you tell us something about your family and personal life?

Lampe has three sons, Thomas, 22, William, 20, and Michael, 14. "They're all gifted in their own unique ways," she said. "My hobby is my work. On occasion I will plant a flower or two. I love to read. I have real diverse interests in terms of reading. I love to read gardening books, and I love to garden, and I love to cook. I'm very much involved in my church, South Street Christian Church. I also have a teapot collection. I love tea and I can serve it with the best."

by Frank Shipe