Kira Alexander, 13, of Lawrence, center, joins her contemporaries in giving themselves a hand Sunday after being recognized by the Duke University Talent Identification Program at the Lied Center. The program helps identify academically talented youths and helps inform them about their abilities and academic options.

KU senior Carter Royce Waite, of Falmouth, Maine, left, congratulates seventh-grader John K. McCain, of Lawrence, on Sunday, June 1, 2008 during the Duke Talent Identification Program at the Lied Center.

Camera-wielding parents clamored for a clear view of the stage as about 400 academically talented seventh-graders from across Kansas received medals in a ceremony Sunday at the Lied Center.

“It feels really good,” said Kira Alexander, a 13-year-old Bishop Seabury Academy student who was among those honored.

Officials with the 2008 Duke University Talent Identification Program (TIP) visited Kansas University’s campus to recognize students who have performed well on standardized tests.

“This year’s talent search had over 70,000 applicants,” said Julie Bennington of Duke TIP. About 21,000 from the program’s 16-state region scored high enough to be invited to the recognition program. Of the more than 1,600 Kansas students who applied, 847 students were selected.

The program considers student performance on either the SAT or ACT. For example, students who score a 21 or above out of a possible 36 on the English, math, reading or science portions of the ACT meet the program’s criteria. The program also honors fourth- and fifth-graders through a talent search.

Sunday’s participants crossed the Lied Center’s stage one at a time and received a standing ovation from the crowd.

The keynote speaker was Simran Sethi, an environmental correspondent for NBC News and the Lacy C. Haynes Visiting Professional Chair in Journalism at Kansas University.

Sethi told the students to be true to themselves.

“It’s about finding the connections that make sense for you,” she said. “You’re not always going to do what you want to do. Trust me. But if you can make sure that at the end of every day you’re doing what’s true to you and true to your purpose, then you’ll find that you go really far.”