Education in Washington County: Classrooms With a View!

Emory & Henry University Marketing Team

When Lauren Smith moved to Washington County from Colorado two years ago, she wanted to make sure she wasn’t giving up access to the type of outdoor recreation opportunities she had become accustomed to in the Rocky Mountain region. 

Instead, Smith discovered that the great outdoors is just as great in Southwest Virginia, and actually even easier to enjoy. 

“I’ve had way more immediate access to the outdoors in Washington County than I ever did living out West,” Smith says. “I have been overjoyed with the amount of outdoor access there is here.” 

Smith is enjoying those opportunities – and enabling others to experience them as well – in her role as outdoor programming specialist at Emory & Henry University near Abingdon. Smith helps combine education with the surrounding environment through the school’s Center for Outdoor Studies, which provides regular extracurricular outdoor recreation activities (hiking, paddling, climbing, etc.) for students, along with two outdoor-oriented academic programs. 

“You’re going to build a much deeper bond with someone if you go on a backpacking trip with them compared to going to a seminar,” Smith says. “Our students are put into real outdoor situations with their peers. They’re learning skills together, forming bonds, getting exercise and having fun.” 

Of course, when it comes to outdoor recreation, most of Washington County is a playground. Smith says that is why Emory & Henry University is ideal for students who are interested in an outdoor-oriented career. 

“Say you want to open a bike shop one day. You can be a business major and get our Applied Risk Management and Backcountry Leadership certificate as a supplement,” Smith says. “Or if you want to work in outdoor education, you can obtain the credentials that you need to be a teacher while also gaining experience working in the outdoors. 

“Our classes prepare students to be qualified outdoor leaders. What’s important for us is this element of applied theory, where we are actually going out into the country and facilitating these experiences for students. This helps prepare them for whatever outdoor adventures they want to have moving forward in their lives.” 

One of those experiences is the Semester-A-Trail Program, which enables students to complete a long-section hike of the Appalachian Trail in the spring while enrolled in a full course load that starts before the trek. 

Public Schools in Washington County: Focused on the Future

In Washington County, educators are equipping students with the skills and knowledge necessary to thrive in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. 

By introducing innovative teaching models and cutting-edge programs, Washington County Public Schools (WCPS) is paving the way for a future-ready generation. These forward-thinking strategies are designed to foster critical thinking, adaptability, problem-solving and technical skills, ensuring students are well-prepared to compete in an increasingly advanced marketplace. 

When Andrew Smith and Thomas Larimer, two of the district’s instructional technology resource teachers, approached the administration with an innovative idea for a mobile STEM lab, they received an enthusiastic green light. With the district’s blessing – and funding – the pair converted a 32-foot trailer into a mobile STEM learning lab they named the Washington County Tech Trek. 

The trailer is retrofitted with lab equipment, including drones, headsets and Sphero robots – enough for an entire class. The lab now travels to schools all across the county giving students and teachers lessons in technology. Larimer says one of the main goals is to make teachers of all subjects more comfortable with utilizing technology and incorporating it into their lessons. 

“We have some teachers who just aren’t comfortable using drones or robots, and that’s where we come in. We give them some training, and the hope is, eventually, they can rent out the trailer for their classes, and then they can implement the lessons and use the technology how they want,” he says.

While Larimer and Smith performed most of the trailer renovations themselves, students enrolled in the Washington County Career & Technical Education Center assisted with completing the interior of the construction project.

“It gave them a chance to learn how to do some flooring and things they might not get to do in the regular classroom,” Larimer says. 

Career & Technical Education in Washington County

The Career & Technical Education Center offers nine programs in such high-demand career areas as welding, masonry, engineering, health sciences and sports medicine. Through a partnership with Virginia Highlands Community College, students can simultaneously earn college and high school credit and even earn certificates that will allow them to enter the workforce directly after high school.

“The majority of our students often achieve more than one certification during their time with us. Multiple credentials mean multiple opportunities,” says Brian Johnson, principal of the Washington County Career & Technical Education Center. “It is not uncommon for a health science student to acquire a state license as a nurse’s aide, a national license as a pharmacy technician, and complete one year in a licensed practical nursing class – all while earning college credits in three programs.”

The district’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs not only provide students with industry-specific and academic competencies, but also nurture vital interpersonal skills crucial for the modern workplace, such as effective communication, social responsibility, ethical leadership, analytical abilities and ingenuity.

“The curriculum is driven in part by meetings and conversations with local business and industry. There are advisory committees that meet to discuss adjustments needed in the curriculum to meet local needs,” says Barry Yost, supervisor of career and technical education for Washington County Public Schools. “For example, within the last couple of years, WCPS has doubled the course offering for welding and even installed a new state-of-the-art welding lab.”

Nurturing Students’ Minds and Bodies

The school district’s innovation extends well beyond the classroom. One of the first initiatives undertaken by Superintendent Keith Perrigan was to establish in-person and virtual health clinics to serve students and staff.

“By providing health-related services to our students and staff, we are able to improve attendance because they never have to leave our campus to receive services,” Perrigan says. “Having our own clinics, both in-person and via telemedicine, means we significantly expedite the care our stakeholders need. We hope to continue to expand services such as this so that our schools become a place where children can get all the services they need.”

Perrigan says the school district offers a robust menu of extracurricular and co-curricular opportunities as well as “top-notch” special education services and school facilities and an expansive food services department that provides three meals a day to students at no cost to parents. 

“I believe that Washington County Public Schools can be the best school system in the commonwealth of Virginia. I think that by setting individualized high expectations for students and providing corresponding services and by being bold, innovative and creative, we can accomplish that goal,” Perrigan says.

Ballad Health Academy: Nursing a Bright Future

With national health care worker shortages at an all-time high, communities across the country are ramping up efforts to encourage more students to pursue careers in health care, particularly the nursing field. 

Across Northeastern Tennessee and Southwestern Virginia, Ballad Health is partnering with colleges and universities to launch Ballad Health Academy, a training for high school students. The program will provide students with pathways into health care careers, including nursing, information technology and health care finance. Students will have the opportunity to earn industry-valued credentials and certifications as well as a traditional high school diploma.

“The health manpower labor shortage is an extreme crisis throughout the nation, and Ballad Health, our team members and our patients have experienced first-hand the difficulties resulting from the shortage,” says Alan Lavine, Ballad Health chairman and CEO. “Our region has the capability to contribute to solving this problem, and Ballad Health Academy will become a national model for how local communities can help fill these important workforce needs.”

The program includes classroom, virtual and work-based training to help accelerate students’ entrance into the workforce. For example, students can earn licensed practical nursing credentials upon graduation. They can then work for Ballad Health while also matriculating toward a registered nurse degree. At Emory & Henry University, the curriculum will be implemented at the college’s SWVA-HEALS, a career lab school for 10th-12th graders interested in health care careers.

– Teree Caruthers contributed to this article.