Charlotte
About Us
Founded in 2007 with the support of Turner Construction Company, the ACE Mentor Program of the Greater Charlotte Area is an after-school program for high school young people interested in exploring career opportunities in architecture, construction and engineering.
Through office tours, videos and field trips, the program introduces students to the industry’s various disciplines. In addition, under the mentorship of industry professionals, students work in teams on projects that simulate “real-life” situations.
After a 2007 spring pilot program with 11 students and 8 mentors, the first full year program was completed in May 2008. The 2008-2009 program is expected to have approximately 60 students from West Charlotte, Independence and Myers Park high schools who will meet with mentors for approximately 17 two-hour sessions.
Our Projects
During last year's program, students visited the University of North Carolina at Charlotte Architecture School, professional offices, the new UNCC baseball stadium, a steel manufacturaing plant and numerous jobsites. They also engaged in various “hands-on” activities that allowed them to work with professionals to discover what career options may spark their interest. The schools joined together to compete in the annual CANstruction competition, learn about green building at one of the city's first LEED certified projects and meet with city officials and designers to discuss the new light rail system. The latter fieldtrip was the beginning of the spring-long project that allowed each school team to design a hypothetical light rail station at their school. Students presented their final projects at the Annual Scholarship and Awards Banquet in May.
The 2008-2009 program is shaping up to be our best year yet, with more exciting activities and fieldtrips in store. Check back soon for a sneak peek at this year's spring design project and new pictures from this year's meetings.
Watch Our Students During Their Mentoring Session
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Group 1 adds more levels to their design.
Group 1 creates a unique design build.
Group 2 sketches a design and build from their plan.
Walter B. Davis tests the structure.
Xa and Prince from Group 2 hash out the design feature.
Participate in ACE!
If you’d like to experience ACE’s challenges, opportunities and rewards for yourself, just contact the ACE leader listed in the upper right-hand corner of this page.
