Read more about Access Academy, a program offering a different educational pathway, allowing students to learn more about information technology (IT) in Loudoun County.
Imagine graduating high school not only with a diploma, but also with nearly two years worth of college credits in information technology (IT), and real world career opportunities already within reach. That is exactly what Potomac Falls High School (PFHS) is now offering with the launch of Access Academy.
Access Academy is a specialized program created through a partnership between LCPS, George Mason University (GMU), and Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC), funded by a new Virginia initiative to establish innovative “lab schools”.
“Access Academy is a lab school… [with] 30 students at each grade level. It is a chance to graduate high school with up to nearly 20 credits in IT from George Mason and NVCC,” said principal Brandon Wolfe, who was the driving force behind the implementation of Access Academy at PFHS.
The term “lab school” refers to the funding structure, offering a new educational model. Freshmen and sophomores enrolled in Access Academy will follow a pathway that includes Computer Information Systems (CIS) and study-skills prep classes. Then, junior and senior students spend their school days entirely off campus at GMU’s Fuse campus in Arlington, taking all dual enrollment (DE) IT classes.
“Their goal,” Wolfe explains, “is to build relationships with business partners looking to hire new students as soon as they graduate.”
Seniors in Access Academy won’t just complete high school; they’ll already be involved in college-level academics and have a foundation for career networking.
“Some kids can go straight into a four-year school, other students will hopefully be able to get a job in IT as soon as they leave high school,” said Wolfe.
He also explained that the program is especially beneficial for students who already have a strong idea of their career goals and want to get a head start.
PFHS was chosen as the pilot site for the first Access Academy in Virginia, making it a flagship for what could become a statewide model of specialized education. “The goal is to have a bunch of lab schools across the state,” said Wolfe.
However, PFHS didn’t just happen across this opportunity. When LCPS, NVCC, and GMU submitted their proposal to the state and received approval, they reached out to high schools across the county to find a host. “I reached out and said, ‘I think this would be great for my community,’” said Wolfe. “I think that the students will benefit from this opportunity.”
Entry into Access Academy is determined by a lottery system. Students who meet the program’s prerequisites express interest during a set application window. Then, eligible applicants are entered into a lottery, and the selected students are notified and given the choice to accept or decline.
Despite being open to any student in Virginia, the program is still expected to draw mostly from Loudoun County. “If you wanted to, you could drive from Richmond and come to this every day,” explained Wolfe.
“A lot of kids graduate and they don’t know what they want to do,” said Wolfe. “This gives students who have an idea of what they want to do to start contributing to the workforce, getting a step up before they go to college.”
With strong support across the state, and from PFHS, Access Academy is set to open doors for a new generation of students.