Vanessa R. Wood, Co-Founder, President, Co-Research PI – The International Gifted Consortium (IGC), Research Center for The Highly-Profoundly Gifted – is passionate about education, human development, and developmental potential. She believes each individual has a unique developmental path that should be honored among the collaborative community.
She has spent over 15 years advocating for the educational and developmental needs of gifted and highly-profoundly gifted children. Through experience, research, and collaboration with professionals across disciplines and across the globe, Vanessa has developed an in-depth understanding of the greater-than-typical intensities, advanced and asynchronous development, and extraordinary potential of giftedness and the highly-profoundly gifted individual.
Vanessa grew up in California, Texas and Michigan. She studied Entrepreneurial Leadership, Marketing and Communications at Babson College in Wellesley, MA. She was recognized for various leadership contributions and honored as the recipient of the 1995 SBI award at the annual Babson Distinguished Entrepreneurs Ceremony alongside Arthur Blank.
Vanessa lead immediate impacts as the National Marketing Director for a Boston based company and New Business Development for PepsiCo and Tropicana DSD. She earned her masters in Gifted Education while facilitating her children’s education and development.
Vanessa fulfilled her children’s educational needs while collaborating in various community roles including Gifted Program Development and Administration, Parent-Teacher Liaison and HSGS Board Member. She created and facilitated programs to fit the needs of HG-PG learners including: Advanced Astronaut Training with the Challenger Learning Center and Botany Field Research at the Chicago Botanic Gardens.
Vanessa served as Program Director for PG Retreat, Local Area Marketing and Alliance Lead for National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) and Arizona Association for Gifted and Talented (AAGT) committee member.
Vanessa R. Wood, Co-Research Principle Investigator, in collaboration with The University of Antwerp, leads the first international study of highly-profoundly gifted children and emotional, intellectual, imaginational, psychomotor, and sensual overexcitabilities. Vanessa is the host of The IGC podcast, “Room With A View” and Corresponding Author, The IGC literature review of highly-profoundly gifted individuals and overexcitabilities.
For speaking engagements, professional development and training, parent education, program development, please email: VanessaWood@giftedconsortium.org
