The Cherokee County School District will hold orientation meetings Monday and Tuesday with middle school students involved in a new junior scholars initiative.

A junior scholar orientation for Gaffney area middle school students will be held today at 6:30 p.m. in the Gaffney High auditorium. An orientation for Blacksburg Middle students will be held Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at the Blacksburg High auditorium.

The school district has invited 50 eighth grade students who are gifted academically from each of the district's four middle schools to participate. These students will use Princeton Review Pocket Prep handheld computers to prepare for taking the PSAT on Oct. 17.

Students become a junior scholar by scoring higher than 50 on the PSAT in verbal, math or writing.

Seventh grade students recognized by Duke University's Talent Identification Program are automatically recognized as junior scholars.

The state does not place a limit on how many students can become junior scholars, superintendent Dr. Bill James said. The district had 30 Cherokee County students become junior scholars last year, compared to 41 in 2005.

"We have done fairly well with the junior scholars program," James said. "Our goal is to dramatically increase the number by identifying 200 students from our middle schools who have the potential to become junior scholars."

The orientation meetings will introduce students and their parents to the new Pocket Prep technology that junior scholar candidates will use in Encore, the middle school enrichment classes, James said. Each handheld computer has software programs designed to help students increase their vocabulary, practice drills and tutorials, and a calculator to help develop their skills on the SAT verbal, math and writing sections.

James read an article about the Pocket Prep technology while on vacation in early July. Impressed by the technology, James said the district was able to secure private funding to provide the interactive technology tool for students to use in their PSAT test preparation.

"There are so many advantages to the junior scholar program. It opens the door for students to earn scholarships, receive information from colleges and participate in summer academic programs," James said. "I just think the junior scholars program is a resource that we need to use more to help our students reach their full academic potential."