Central VA

About Us

High school students in the Richmond area can now benefit from a nationwide program designed to introduce them to the wide range of career opportunities open to young people in architecture, construction, engineering, and related areas of the building design and construction industry. ACE has launched its pilot program at Hermitage High School, but hopes to expand the program to additional schools in the Fall of 2011.

ACE is currently in Albemarle County Schools which consists of Western Albemarle, Monticello and Albemarle High School. Each school has one ACE team with four (4) mentors and 15 to 20 students. The mentors work together to attract young people to their professions by recruiting at the high schools before the start of the program. The program runs a total of 14 weeks and is wrapped up at the end when all three schools join together for their final project presentation. At the Presentation Ceremony ACE Mentoring of Central Virginia will award selected students with a scholarship.

At weekly meetings, student teams work directly with professionals from leading area firms, who volunteer their time to mentor the teams as they design hypothetical projects, tour local construction sites, and visit architectural, engineering and construction offices.
For students, it’s a unique chance to discover and develop new skills, solidify future goals and get on track to exciting, rewarding careers. In addition, many students form positive relationships with industry professionals who can provide important references for obtaining college admissions, scholarships, internships and full-time employment.

Our Team Projects

Students in the ACE program typically work closely with their mentors on projects that provide hands-on experience in solving the types of design, engineering and construction challenges industry professionals confront every day.

The teams often learn how to use advanced computerized tools, such as AutoCAD, while special exercises and activities illustrate the industry’s demand for young people skilled in math, physics, economics, art and other disciplines.

Many ACE affiliates culminate their program year with special events at which teams present their concepts to mentors, families, teachers and community leaders.

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.