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Rutherford County Schools awarded $1 million Innovative High School Grant





Rutherford County Schools

Rutherford County Schools

Rutherford County Schools was awarded a $1 million Innovative High School Grant to boost the work-based learning programs at Riverdale and La Vergne high schools with career-based courses and a career coach.

The grant is funded by the Tennessee Department of Education, which plans to award a total of $30 million to districts across the state using federal dollars found in the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund.

The news release from the state said that the county plans to offer after-school industry certification trainings and employer-led camps to equip students with entry-level job skills.

The grant period began May 21 and will run through Sept. 30, 2023.

RCS plans to use its funds to improve the existing Career and Technical Education courses offered to its high school students.

“They need more support,” said Rutherford County Schools Director Bill Spurlock in a news release. “Our CTE is very robust.”

Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Jimmy Sullivan said the grant shows the state’s effort to present more hands-on learning programs.

“They’re looking for new ways to support districts, to help kids in the 21st century,” Sullivan said in the news release.

While the CTE programs offered at Riverdale and La Vergne are functioning “above the norm” in comparison to other schools in the state, according to Sullivan, the additional support would allow those two high schools to have their own programs recognized within the district.

For example, Oakland High School has its mechatronics program, and Smyrna High School has its Cambridge program.

“Riverdale doesn’t currently have something that is their own,” Sullivan said in the news release. “So, this will help us start down that journey of thinking about different ways to give those schools something that is supported by Rutherford County Schools, but unique to them.”

Sullivan said the career coach role could change over time, but he’s optimistic about the benefits for students preparing to enter the workforce in the near future.

He said the ideal candidate would be someone well connected to the chamber of commerce to provide guidance and insight about jobs that are available and what the district can do to assist students.

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