High Tech Academy (for course numbers, see table below)

Offered at the Advanced Career Education Center at Highland Springs

ACE Center at Highland Springs instructor: Allison  Buschy

Program Overview

High Tech Academy (HTA) is a dual-enrollment STEM program that gives students the opportunity to take college-level engineering, math, and physics classes in a challenging environment with other motivated students. HTA students can earn up to 26 college credits during their junior and senior years of high school! Students participate in hands-on honors engineering classes and work together to solve problems, all while earning college credit in mathematics, physics, and engineering. If you are a motivated HCPS student interested in getting a head start for college, this program is for you!

Courses Offered:

• Precalculus with Trigonometry* [Reynolds MTH 167]

• Calculus I* [Reynolds MTH 263]

• Calculus II* [Reynolds MTH 264]

• Differential Equations* [Reynolds MTH 267]

• General Physics I* [VCU PHYS 201]

• General Physics II* [VCU PHYS 202]

• Introduction to Engineering* [VCU ENGR 101]

• Engineering Statics* [VCU EGMN 102]

• Hon Engineering Explorations I [HCPS 8450]

• Hon Engineering Analysis & Applications II  [HCPS 8451]

POSSIBLE CERTIFICATIONS:

• NOCTI Pre-Engineering Certification

• Workplace Readiness

Program Overview

The Engineering Program is a dynamic, two-year opportunity for juniors and seniors from all county high schools. Students can:

Earn up to 28 college credits through partnerships with VCU and Reynolds Community College.

Build professional networks by connecting with potential employers for internship opportunities.

Explore career paths through hands-on field trips to engineering sites.

Located at the ACE Center at Highland Springs, the program is independent of the Highland Springs High School engineering program and operates on an alternating-day schedule. Students continue to attend their home high schools, allowing them to maintain participation in sports, marching band, clubs, and other activities.

Annual Program Fee: $10–$20, depending on the number of engineering courses taken.

To Join The HTA

• Interested HCPS students can apply online during the fall of their sophomore year.

• To be eligible for the program, students must meet the following criteria:

  • Currently enrolled in Algebra II or Precalculus.

    • Maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0.

    • Finish Algebra II or Precalculus with at least a C.

• Students may still apply after the fall application deadline if spots are available and will be considered for acceptance through mid-spring.

High Tech Course Tracks

Published: Dec. 6, 2022. Click here to listen. Dave and Ali Ogburn talk with us about their career path to becoming engineers at Goodyear Tires. Both of them, while in college, got a lot of experience in a motorsports program at UVA while they studied to become engineers. They both worked for racing teams early on and while Dave is a Performance Test Driver at Goodyear, Ali is a senior engineer at Goodyear. They have a remarkable story about the years of experiences that led them to both be working at Goodyear Tires at their facility in Texas. Don’t miss this episode.

Published: Dec. 14, 2021. Click here to listen. In our latest podcast, we meet Devon Gallagher, a nuclear engineer with Dominion Power! She talks with us about her attending Douglas Freeman High School and her days as a CTE student in our former electronics class years ago as well as what she feels about the importance of a CTE education for students today.