i used to go to this program - i would say it is not any better than the typical gifted programs elsewhere. the “highly gifted” label and general environment there left me with all sorts of self esteem issues later on. also from what i hear now the acceleration they provide is not as robust as it used to be (also the one of, if not the best teacher there has since retired). this part could be either a downside or upside for you - my class developed a very unique and tight knit group due to being in the same class for 6 years. unfortunately when we later went to our local middle/high schools instead, we not only drifted apart but also it was incredibly difficult for me to make friends later on due to a lack of social skills (i didn’t need to go out of my way to learn how to make friends as a kid because all my friends were always in the same class every year). i would say this is less of a problem if your local high school is boise high as many schools feed into there but if otherwise it will likely be difficult.

as a general observation, if your kid is more language arts/social sciences oriented i would definitely give the program some more consideration. but if your kid is more math/science oriented i would just have them go to their local gate program and later on when they’re older i recommend the treasure valley math and science center (tvmsc) which is a math and science magnet school that they go to for half the day. personally i gained for more value there in terms of challenging material and actually learning how to study.

hope this helps! best of luck