RICHMOND, Va. -- CodeRVA Regional High School, a new computer science based school in Richmond, had a ceremonial ribbon cutting Tuesday. More than 90 ninth and tenth grade student from around the region will attend the school in its first year.
"We will offer the opportunity to get a two-year degree at the school, as well as paid internships in computer science before they leave here," CodeRVA Executive Director Michael Bolling said. "We're going to be using a blended learning model, which is a combination of online instruction combined with face-to-face instruction that really personalizes learning for students."
The students were selected via lottery out of a pool of 700 candidates.
CodeRVA has three goals, according to its website:
Redesign the high school experience to better meet the needs of today’s students
Address racial, economic, and gender inequities in STEM-related education
Increase the pool of potential employees in coding and other computer science-related fields for central Virginia
The school is located on Durham Street.
"This location, within five minutes of Maggie Walker Governor’s School enables partnering school divisions to leverage the existing transportation system to Maggie Walker," a CodeRVA spokesperson said. "Initial planning and implementation grants were provided through the Virginia Department of Education’s High School Innovation Grants. Architectural services were provided at no cost to CodeRVA by Ballou, Justice, and Upton and SMBW Architects. Capital One provided furniture for the school and a grant to assist in initial costs. CarMax has provided a grant that provides for the school’s independently-operated student selection system and initial technology equipment costs."
Students from Chesterfield, Colonial Heights, Cumberland, Dinwiddie, Hanover, Henrico, Hopewell, New Kent, Petersburg, Powhatan, Prince George, Richmond, and Sussex can attend the regional computer school.
While the school will open with less than 100 students, school leaders plan to select up to 100 students to fill future classes.
