Senator Lashrecse Aird shares a fun learning moment with students in the GO TEC® Career Connections lab at Hopewell’s Carter G. Woodson Middle School
Carter G. Woodson Middle School’s GO TEC lab showcases how hands-on technology training is preparing students across the region for high-demand career pathways
Last week, Hopewell’s Carter G. Woodson Middle School was visited by Senator Lashrecse Aird, who represents Virginia’s 13th District which includes Hopewell. The primary destination for Senator Aird’s visit was the school’s GO TEC® lab, which has been connecting Hopewell middle school students with high-demand, high wage career pathways since it launched in 2024. GO TEC (short for Great Opportunities in Technology and Engineering Careers) is a program that was launched in 2017 by the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville, VA. To date, the IALR has deployed over 75 labs across Virginia.
L-R: Pedro Berrios, GO TEC® Teacher – Hopewell City Public Schools; Courtney Massengill from the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research; Senator Lashrecse Aird, Virginia’s 13th District; and Stephanie Wheeler from the Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing at the GO TEC® lab in Hopewell’s Carter G. Woodson Middle School
During her visit, Senator Aird got a firsthand look of how the students from Carter G. Woodson are using their GO TEC lab’s equipment and curriculum to learn about Robotics and Automation, one of 11 technical modules GO TEC modules for 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. Other modules available include several engineering disciplines, welding, precision machining, and energy. GO TEC is an excellent partner for school divisions in Central Virginia, as it provides comprehensive hands-on learning opportunities for students – especially those who might not otherwise have exposure to technical career pathways outside the classroom.
The Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing (CCAM) is a GO TEC partner and is the In-Region Coordinating Entity for GO TEC in Central Virginia. CCAM hosts a training and demonstration lab at their advanced manufacturing technology research facility in Prince George County, and teachers from all around Central Virginia come there to be trained on implementation of the various GO TEC modules. CCAM has received generous financial support for GO TEC from the GO Virginia economic development initiative, and private funding sources including the John Randolph Foundation and The Cameron Foundation.
The IALR and CCAM currently support 13 GO TEC labs across 10 school divisions in Central Virginia. Several more area school divisions have expressed interest to either start or expand their participation in GO TEC, and CCAM is working with them to launch these in 2026. For more information, please contact Lorin.Sodell@CCAM-VA.com, Brian.Mathis@CCAM-VA.com, or Angela.Brown@IALR.org.
