John Truitt, has over 30 years experience with gifted and talented students and their families, first as a teacher and later as a school administrator, guidance counselor, policy maker, state director, and parent. She is co author of two award winning books, A Parent’s Guide to Gifted Children, and Grandparents’ Guide to Gifted Children. For five years she worked as a designated counselor/advocate for gifted high school students in Tucson, Arizona, and for three years served as State Director of Gifted Education in Arizona where she helped to draft legislation and create funding for gifted programs across the state. In that role she traveled across the state to provide training and technical assistance to school personnel to help them meet the legislative mandate.
She is a former member of the Board of AAGT, the Arizona Association for Gifted and Talented, serving one year as conference chair. Her administrative experience includes being an Assistant Principal in a district that included a high percentage of Native American students.
She has taught middle school, high school and college students and has coached Academic Decathlon and Future Problem Solving programs. She has taught graduate level courses in gifted education and creativity. She graduated from Carleton College, received an M.A. in English from the University of Iowa, and an M.Ed. in Guidance and Counseling from the University of Arizona. She lives in Tucson, Arizona.