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Information on this page is provided by the Office of Career & Technical Education
and the
Division of Special Education and Student Services.

Staff Contacts - Office of Career & Technical Education

Staff Contacts - Division of Special Education and Student Services

Established STEM Academies

THE BLUE RIDGE CROSSROADS GOVERNOR'S ACADEMY FOR TECHNICAL EDUCATION (BRCGATE)

Project Title: The Blue Ridge Crossroads Governor’s Academy for Technical Education

Project Lead: Carroll County Public Schools

Program Focus: The academy targets three pathways in three career clusters: Engineering and Technology, Construction, and Food Production and Processing Systems. Students enrolled in the Engineering and Technology pathway will be actively involved with high-tech devices, engineering graphics, mathematical concepts, and scientific principles through engineering design experiences. The Construction pathway will build upon current dual enrollment career and technical program areas within the Architecture and Construction Cluster with a focus on Green career awareness and training. In the Food Production and Processing Systems pathway, Carroll County Public Schools (CCPS) makes its Agriculture Research Farm available to other partners in the Academy to conduct independent research.

Partners: Carroll County Public Schools; Galax City Public Schools; Grayson County Public Schools, the Crossroads Institute; Wytheville Community College; Virginia Tech; Virginia Cooperative Extension Agency; New River/Mount Rogers Workforce Investment Board; Chestnut Creek School of the Arts; and the following businesses:  Red Hill General Store; The Turman Group; Lowe’s Home Improvement; and future partners:  Radford University; Medfit Systems; Professional Networks; Guardian; and MOOG Industries.

The Blue Ridge Crossroads Governor’s Academy for Technical Education (Carroll County) website

Board Of Education Approved Governor’s Academy Application

Executive Summary

Partnership Members: Carroll County Public Schools; Galax City Public Schools; Grayson County Public Schools, the Crossroads Institute; Wytheville Community College; Virginia Tech; Virginia Cooperative Extension Agency; New River/Mount Rogers Workforce Investment Board; Chestnut Creek School of the Arts; and the following businesses: Red Hill General Store; The Turman Group; Lowe’s Home Improvement; and future partners: Radford University; Medfit Systems; Professional Networks; Guardian; and MOOG Industries.

Lead Entity: Carroll County Public Schools

Fiscal Agent: Carroll County Public Schools

Contact Person:
Dr. Mark Burnette
Director of Middle and Secondary Education
Carroll County Public Schools
605-9 Pine Street
Hillsville, Virginia 24343
Phone:  276-730-3214
E-mail:  maburnet@ccpsd.k12.va.us

Academy Location:
Carroll County Public Schools
605-9 Pine Street
Hillsville, VA  24343

Number of Students Served:The Academy will serve 100 students in 2011-12 and 300 students in 2012-13.

Career Pathways: The academy targets pathways in three career clusters.  The first pathway, Engineering and Technology in the Stem Cluster, will be new to the course offerings at each of the participating secondary schools.  Students enrolled in the pathway will be actively involved with high-tech devices, engineering graphics, mathematical concepts, and scientific principles through engineering-design experiences.  Students enrolled in this pathway will be introduced to the career choices in the engineering and technology areas and prepare for postsecondary education in one of the engineering and technology fields.

The second pathway, Construction, is in the Architecture and Construction Career Cluster.  The pathway will build upon current dual enrollment career and technical program areas within the Architecture and Construction Cluster with a focus on Green career awareness and training.

The third pathway will focus on the Food Production and Processing Systems from the Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources (AFNR) Cluster.  Carroll County Public Schools (CCPS) will make its Agriculture Research Farm available to other partners in the Academy to conduct independent research and replicate projects already underway at the facility.

Academy Goals and Description:This partnership recognizes the need both statewide, and particularly at the regional level, for options that will enable the general population of students to acquire science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) literacy and other critical knowledge, skills, and credentials that will prepare them for high-demand, high-wage, and high-skill careers.  The BRCGATE partnership will help students develop advanced level technical and academic skills that will not only provide students an advantage in the current work force but provide them the foundational skills necessary to meet the expectations of the future global work force.

Finally, the BRCGATE will address the need for a highly skilled work force that will assist the region in attracting high-tech industries to a rural, economically challenged area of the state.

Highlights of the Academy:

• In cooperation with Wytheville Community College, an Associate’s Degree program has been implemented in the BRCGATE service region high schools. 
• High school students can enroll in this program as early as their sophomore year and can obtain an Associate in Science Degree concurrently with a high school diploma through enrollment in dual credit courses and attending summer sessions at WCC. 
• The BRCGATE would be able to expand pathway options that would include a Pre-Engineering Program for students in the service region.
• Each student in the Academy will have an individualized high school plan that is initially developed during the second semester of their seventh-grade year. 
• The BRCGATE program will build upon the current core curriculum offered by partner public school systems with a focus on higher-level mathematics, higher-level science, and foreign language. 
• The Academy will build from established CTE Tech Prep pathways, such as the dual credit components in information technology, computer networking, electronics, pre-construction and construction. 
• The school systems will be assisted through course offerings from Wytheville Community College and the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) and through assistance provided by Virginia Tech and other partners in the agreement. 
• In addition to providing facilities to house the Academy, the Crossroads Institute will provide relevant entrepreneurial learning opportunities. 
• With implementation of this Academy, students will benefit from increased academic rigor and new course offerings as a result of this collaboration.
• The BRCGATE’s partnership with the New River/Mt. Rogers Workforce Investment Board will ensure that workplace readiness skills are a major component of the curriculum. 
• Students will obtain relevant learning opportunities through internships with STEM-related industries.
• Entrepreneurial training and the cultivation of relationships with college faculty and industry representatives will play important roles in the Academy’s network of support and guidance to assist students toward achieving their college and career goals.

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