Henrico County Public Schools’ Career and Technical Education (CTE) program was featured at a U.S. Department of Labor event during National Apprenticeship Week, according to a May 1 announcement. Program director Mac Beaton, along with former student Skye Allan and Jeff Lewis of VSC Fire Security, participated in the “Making America Skilled Again” roundtable in Washington, D.C.
The event highlighted how K-12 education can better prepare students for workforce needs. This topic is significant as schools across the country look for ways to bridge the gap between classroom learning and industry demands. Henrico County Public Schools extended educational services across Henrico County, Virginia, according to the official website.
Beaton brought Allan—a 2023 graduate of the Advanced Career Education Center at Highland Springs High School—and Lewis to discuss their collaboration on constructing the Western Henrico Adult Education Complex at Regency Square Mall. Allan worked as an apprentice under VSC Fire Security’s supervision on this commercial construction project. “The roundtable discussion started out wanting to know a little about how our kids were doing commercial construction, because that’s pretty much unheard of in a school division. And how did we convince everybody that we could do it?” Beaton said.
He explained that most trades industries do not employ apprentices under age 18 due to liability concerns but found success by turning a mall renovation into an educational opportunity: “They won’t hire you unless you have some of those basic skills, so we found a way to use the mall project as our classroom, which was a commercial construction site,” he said.
Lewis described how working with Henrico’s CTE program became a model for his company elsewhere: “They are using us as their pilot ground and then taking it to other states trying to do the same things to create this pathway for kids to come into the industry.” Allan spoke about her motivation for studying trades and credited her apprenticeship experience with helping her visualize her future career: “She said where she started has now helped her visualize her career later,” Beaton said.
Beaton noted lawmakers present at the event have since contacted him regarding obstacles preventing students from accessing apprenticeships nationwide. He remarked: “The goal was that other school divisions take what we’ve done and figure out how to duplicate it and get through and over some of those hurdles… And now they’re looking at the Department of Labor saying what can they do to remove some of those hurdles. I truly believe it’s more of a mindset shift.” He added, “It was truly an honor to be there.”
Henrico County Public Schools received accolades for teaching excellence, with educators earning REB Awards for classroom performance and professional development, per the official website. The district focused on delivering positive learning experiences via dedicated staff in educational and support roles, as noted on its official website. Amy Cashwell served as superintendent according to its official website, where HCPS also adopted “The right to achieve. The support to succeed” as its motto.
Other partnerships featured at the roundtable included Omaha’s Urban Agriculture initiative; Rock Hill’s logistics program; Oak Ridge’s advanced manufacturing focus; and Irving’s broadcast media pathway projects.