Wythe County and 15 other Virginia school divisions received a share of $600,000 in career and technical education grants.
Each division will pocket $37,500 to buy new equipment. Wythe County’s funds will buy programmable drones with electronic stabilization cameras for use by Fort Chiswell High School and the Wythe County Technical Center’s Connecting Wythe County Youth to Unmanned Aircraft Systems program.
“First, I want to thank the members of the General Assembly for recognizing the importance of quality CTE programs and for their sustained support of these annual grants to school divisions,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Lisa Coons said. “These grants continue to allow our school divisions to develop robust and innovative CTE programs that are up to date technologically and help prepare students for the realities and expectations of today’s work force.”
Other awards will go for things ranging from 3-D printers and solar energy systems to geriatric program simulators and lathes, laser engravers, welding supplies, plasma cutters, virtual and augmented reality platforms and robotics.
The General Assembly established the CTE equipment grant program in 2016, and the Virginia Department of Education awarded the first grants to schools and technical centers in 2017. Since then, the program has provided $4.2 million to help school divisions update equipment and enhance learning and experiences for career and technical education students.
Wythe schools get grant funds for drone programs
