Roanoke – A brighter future for Virginians, the first adult high school in the Commonwealth is coming to the Star City.
“As we know in the Roanoke Valley about 14,000 adults do not have a high school diploma,” Zenith Barrett, Vice President of Business and Community Engagement at Goodwill Industries of the Valley said.
The site is under construction right now, but within the next two years, adults who missed the opportunity earlier in their life will have a chance to receive a diploma.
“Opportunity for growth for themselves individually, but also to help their families and as a result, it helps the entire community thrive,” Barrett said.
Goodwill Industries of the Valleys was approved by the Virginia Department of Education to operate the first adult high school at the Excel Center in Melrose Plaza.
“The Excel Center really focuses on adult learners, so we will have the chance to offer accelerated courses, flexible courses, and really help students connect with post-secondary options.”
The center’s mission is to be as accessible as possible, bringing resources like childcare, transportation services, and college and career navigation. All in one location, Melrose Plaza.
“It will include a lot of those wraparound services again meeting them where they are but setting the students up for success,” Barrett said.
The high school will be staffed with licensed teachers to start the process of educating the more than 670,000 Virginian adults without a diploma. Anyone over the age of 18 without a high school diploma in the region is able to start their journey in the near future.