G.W. Carver High School has earned exemplary Distinguished Academy honors from the National Academy Foundation (NAF) for all three of its career academies, a first for an Alabama high school.
NAF Academies undergo an assessment process every three years. Evaluations cover community and industry support through Academy Advisory boards, projects completed by academies, students' participation in work-based learning, and the percentage of seniors who graduate with internships.
Based on the assessments, academies that meet all criteria are rated as Certified. Academies that exceed the criteria receive the Model designation. Distinguished is the highest honor an academy can earn.
Carver’s three career academies include Engineering, Health Sciences, and Visual Communications. While Carver is the first school to have more than one academy to earn Distinguished in a year, Wenonah, Woodlawn, Huffman, and Ramsay each have a Distinguished Academy as well.
Carver celebrated the occasion with an assembly today. In addition to a performance by the Carver choir, students heard from guest speakers Angela Lee-Smith, Career Academies Coordinator, and Damiuna Dawson, a Class of 2020 graduate of the Academy of Health Sciences.
In addition, NAF CEO Lisa Dughi and the Walton Foundation will be visiting Carver on April 24.