Wendy A Behrens

Wendy Behrens, M.A. Ed., serves as the Gifted and Talented Education Specialist for the Minnesota Department of Education, providing leadership and consultation services for educators, administrators, and parents. She provides technical assistance to and collaborates with institutions of higher education, professional organizations, educator networks, and others interested in promoting rigorous educational opportunities.

Prior to her service to the state, Behrens worked for 12 years as a district K–12 gifted services coordinator and a consultant for the Science Museum of Minnesota. She is a frequent presenter on instructional strategies, assessment, comprehensive service design and evaluation, and policies that support gifted education. She has been invited to make presentations on various topics related to the education of gifted and high potential at-risk learners in the Middle East, Far East, and Europe.

She serves on the board of the Council of State Directors of Programs for the Gifted, as Chair of the Development and Fund Raising Committee for the National Association of Gifted Children (NAGC), and is a member of the NAGC Policy Task Force and advisory councils for the Northwestern University Center for Talent Development and the University of St. Thomas.