We focus on gifted education at Atkins. A number of our teachers are either licensed in or pursuing license in gifted education.
Atkins offers Latin and Spanish at our school. For students considering careers in the fields of science, engineering, biotechnology, medicine, or law, Latin is an excellent choice. Also, statistics show a significant increase on SAT scores for students who have studied Latin.
Students may choose from a variety of school organizations if they wish to become involved in after-school activities. We encourage all of our students to become active in after-school activities. In fact, at the conclusion of the magnet enrollment period, we encourage rising ninth graders and older students who will be attending Atkins next year to come to Atkins and participate in our after-school organizations so that they may begin to feel a part of our school. Students may earn varsity letters from participating in varsity sports or academic competitions. Our students are very active and win numerous awards.
Many parents who live outside of the city limits of Winston-Salem have mentioned that they have concerns for their students driving to Atkins once they begin driving in their junior and senior years. We often point out that those same students are apt to be driving to the Career Center from their homes or from other high schools. Atkins is located a mere six minutes from the new location of the Career Center. This means that a student can leave Atkins, drive to the Career Center, and be in class in approximately ten minutes, making it easier to mesh schedules between the two schools. In addition, beginning with the 2013-2014 school year, juniors and seniors will have the option of taking college classes offered through Forsyth Tech. Many of these classes will be held on the Atkins campus during the school day, giving students the chance to begin college while in high school.
Atkins was the first high school to adopt a Standard Mode of Dress. We believe this helps us place emphasis on a top tier education for all students.
We invite you to schedule a school tour of Atkins during the school day to see classes in session. The magnet application period has now ended. Atkins, however has limited space in the freshman and sophomore classes and can continue taking magnet applications through March 1. Magnet applications should be completed by downloading the application now through our school web site. Complete the application (which is a Word document) and e-mail it to Joe Childers. We will follow up with an e-mail to let you know we have received the application.
Once you see for yourself, we believe you will want Atkins to be your child's high school. 
