Career & Technical Education
Career & Technical Education
The Career and Technical Education (CTE) department provides sequences of career-related courses designed to help students develop skills needed for employment, advanced technical training programs, and continuing education on the college and university level. Courses help students develop twenty-first century job skills, such as proficiency in computer technology, information acquisition and processing, problem solving, teamwork, and effective communication skills. Some lead to college credit or nationally recognized certificates and credentials!
Career and Technical Education courses are designed to enhance and support the academic curriculum – reinforcing the Standards of Learning established for English, mathematics, science, history, and social science.
CHS and CATEC do not charge any fees for course enrollment.
Charlottesville City Schools features several avenues for promoting awareness of and pathways to future careers:
About the Program: Credentials and Pathways
Offerings are widespread, including:
- commercial photography
- computer science
- culinary arts
- economics and personal finance (required for all students and part of the CHS/CFA Institute Finance Academy)
- engineering
- marketing/entrepreneurship from finance to urban farming
- see full list in “Career and Technical Education” in the Program of Studies.
The CTE class sequences are designed to give college credits or an industry-recognized career-readiness certificate or credential. They also prepare students to continue their learning in college or additional career training. For instance, the engineering and computer science classes in CTE can prepare students to continue their engineering studies in CHS’s Sigma program and beyond — or they can enroll at CATEC to earn valuable industry certifications such as CISCO CCENT or CompTIA A+.
To learn more about the career-readiness certifications or college credits associated with CTE classes at CHS or CATEC, contact your school counselor.
More Information:
Dr. Stacy Heltz, 434-245-2419
Email
Charlottesville Area Technical Education Center (CATEC)
Students may also attend the Charlottesville Area Technical Education Center (CATEC), a regional career and technical education center that provides advanced training in high-demand fields.
Students who complete CATEC programs have the opportunity to earn industry certifications, workforce credentials, high school elective credits, and, in many programs, dual-enrollment college credits. Students completing select CATEC programs earn an average of 11 college credits through local community college partnerships.
CATEC courses meet for a half day each school day, and transportation is provided between Charlottesville High School and CATEC.
Learn More About CATEC