The Grassfield High School Governor’s STEM Academy

Project Title: The Grassfield High School Governor’s STEM Academy

Project Lead: Grassfield High School

Program Focus: The program at the Grassfield High School will focus on engineering and technology, marketing management, and programming and software.

Partners: Chesapeake City Public Schools; Old Dominion University; Tidewater Community College; James Madison University

Board Of Education Approved Governor’s Academy Application

Executive Summary

Partnership Members: Chesapeake City Public Schools; Old Dominion University, Tidewater Community College, James Madison University, City of Chesapeake Economic Development, Lockheed Martin Center for Innovation, NASA Langley Research Center, and D. T. Read Steel Company, Inc.

Lead Entity: Grassfield High School

Fiscal Agent: Chesapeake City Public Schools

Contact Person:
Mrs. Karen Black
Technology Academy Coordinator
Phone: 757 558-4493
E-mail: Karen.Black@cpschools.com

Academy Location:
The Grassfield High School Governor’s STEM Academy
2007 Grizzly Trail
Chesapeake, VA 23323

Number of Students Served: The Grassfield High School Governor’s STEM Academy will have the capacity to enroll 240 students, grades 9-12. During the initial school year (2012-2013) applications will be accepted for 60 students.

Career Pathways: Engineering and Technology, Marketing Management, Programming and Software Development

Academy Goals and Description: The overall goals of the Governor’s STEM Academy are to provide students with STEM enriched 21st-century technological skill and knowledge necessary to succeed in postsecondary education and the work force.

Specific Governor’s STEM Academy objectives include:

Improve academic achievement of Academy students
Increase Standards of Learning (SOL) scores and pass advanced rates for all mathematics and science courses.
Increase completion of dual enrollment courses.
Increase the number of industry certifications awarded to high school students.
Increase the number of students completing a college and career ready curriculum in high school.
Provide work-based learning experiences through strong partnerships with business and industry.
Increase high school graduation rates.
Reduce dropout rates.
Increase enrollment and retention in postsecondary education.
Reduce the number of students requiring remediation in college.
Increase the number of graduates employed in high-wage, high-skilled careers.

Highlights of the Academy: As a result of participating in the Governor’s STEM Academy in the clusters of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics; Information Technology; and Marketing students will:

Gain a deeper understanding of the skills and knowledge incorporated in their fields of study;
Benefit from specialized, project-based courses which develop critical-thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making skills, preparing them for the 21st-century world;
Acquire greater communication skills;
Develop workplace readiness skills;
Receive opportunities to earn industry certifications preparing them to be more competitive in the work force and when applying to advanced training schools or postsecondary institutions;
Obtain meaningful, real-life, hands-on experiences in their career pathway; and
Profit from opportunities for internships, mentorships, job shadowing, and cooperative education, which provide students with advantages when entering postsecondary education and/or the workplace.

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