Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

The Joseph P. King Jr. Career and Technical Academy hosted a Career and Technical Education (CTE) Expo on Thursday, May 15, that highlighted the academy’s many offerings, including the new Pearson Testing Center and a full-fledged Old Dominion University health clinic.

“This is truly a dream that is continuing to manifest itself,” Franklin City Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Carlton Carter said of the academy, which is part of the school division.

He noted to those in attendance at the expo that the Franklin-Southampton Commission put together a strategic plan that emphasized the importance of workforce development.

“So with workforce development being the No. 1 priority in Franklin and the Southampton community, there came the idea of the Career and Technical Education Academy,” he said. 

The expo included a tour of 12 different rooms at the academy that house programs addressing building trades, criminal justice, computer information systems, early childhood education, nursing, marketing, Spanish, testing for certifications and licensing, and more.

Carter said those attending the expo would witness the programs that will prepare children for industry certification so that when they come out of high school, they can be qualified for skilled-labor jobs that pay notably better than minimum wage. Or, he added, they can take their skills and move forward to a two-year or four-year college. 

“So that’s the goal — to make every child career- and college-ready at Franklin City Public Schools when they walk across the (graduation) stage,” he said.

He announced that one of the new programs at J.P. King includes the Pearson Testing Center, which will facilitate workforce development.

“Say if you’re in real estate and you’re trying to achieve your real estate license,” he said. “Now you can come to the J.P. King Career and Technical Education Academy and you can take that test and you can become licensed. So this is not just for students, this is for the community.”

He noted that there is no other Pearson Testing Center within a 50-mile radius; the next center is in Virginia Beach.

“This will service the needs of our community as a whole, so I’m very proud of that,” he said.

Next, he said, “We’ve expanded our partnership with Old Dominion University.”

He indicated that FCPS has partnered with the university in reference to the ODU Mobile Health Clinic.

“And then they said, ‘Well, Dr. Carter, let’s just keep the momentum rolling,’ so now we have a full-fledged health clinic in (the CTE Academy),” he said. “This is a vital service that will also provide opportunities for our students for possible internships, also possible opportunities for, of course, free, much-needed health care that is in the community.”

Then Carter introduced FCPS Gifted and Talented Education Specialist Latreesha Herring, who spoke about the National Technical Honor Society and its new connection to the J.P. King Jr. Career and Technical Academy.

“The National Technical Honor Society is an honor society for career and technical education,” she said. “It is an educational nonprofit that exists to honor, recognize and empower students and teachers in career and technical education.”

She said the society serves more than 100,000 active members annually in secondary and postsecondary chapters across the U.S.

“We are so proud to have opened a chapter this year at J.P. King Career and Technical Academy,” she said. “This honor society honors the achievements of our CTE students, and it provides over $300,000 in scholarships annually. So it helps them connect their education with industry, with jobs and with others in similar industries.”

She said five students were inducted this year into the new local chapter.

“They have been recognized for their demonstration of leadership and excellence in career and technical education, and many of them are also academic scholars in other areas as well,” she said. 

She added, “Despite our small beginnings, we look forward to more inductions, we look forward to seeing more recruitment of our students in the years to come so that as a part of the J.P. King Career and Technical Academy, our technical honor society will help our students to thrive as well.”