Great Opportunities in Technology and Engineering Careers (GO TEC®) stimulates job growth within the commonwealth by creating dependable talent pipelines in strategic, STEM-focused sectors. A talent pathway initiative, GO TEC introduces Virginia middle school students to emerging, STEM-focused career fields through hands-on Career Connections Labs.
Public and private partnerships drive the success of this program, which is administered by the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR).
Beginning in the 2024-25 academic year, more than 9,000 students from 52 Virginia middle schools from Abingdon to Virginia Beach will interact with the GO TEC Career Connections curriculum annually.
“The core needs across Virginia and the nation are the same. We need to expose students to opportunities earlier, change parents’ mindsets about some of these opportunities, and then bring the voice of business and industry into the classroom. GO TEC is designed to do each of those things and more.” – Dr. Julie Brown, Vice President of Advanced Learning, IALR
IALR serves as the fiscal agent and program lead for GO TEC, which is supported and guided by partners that include K12 school systems, higher education, industry and economic development.
Career Awareness
The primary goal of the GO TEC program is to let students experience in-demand and growing manufacturing and engineering career fields with applied learning. Each of the modules includes technology-driven hands-on learning that grows students’ awareness of available and emerging careers.
GO TEC Modules
| Electrical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering | Manufacturing Engineering |
| Automation & Robotics | Welding | Precision Machining |
| Healthcare Technologies | IT Coding & Networking | Metrology |
Many of the industry pathways covered in the program, such as welding and automation, require critical skills needed across various industries. Other modules, like controlled environment agriculture, are focused on a specific industry and combine various skills from other modules.
“GO TEC is awesome because it gives students the opportunity to explore careers and equipment that they would not have access to otherwise.” – Amy Maloskey, GO TEC Teacher, Rural Retreat Middle School, Wythe County
The GO TEC Career Connections program curriculum is both flexible and scalable to meet the workforce and economic development needs of participating GO Virginia regions. Each module’s equipment and content are standardized, ensuring that students across the commonwealth receive the best instruction.
A student at Gretna Middle School uses a virtual reality welding simulator as part of the GO TEC Career Connections curriculum.
Some school divisions offer GO TEC as an elective course that students can choose to take; others require that every student complete the curriculum at some point during middle school. Some divisions even have the capacity for students to have sequential experiences across multiple grade levels. It depends on the size of the individual school and the division.
IALR staff also operate the GO TEC Mobile Lab, which is equipped with all the same equipment as the middle school labs and can be utilized for teacher training or student experiences.
GO TEC uses a hub-and-spoke model to progressively generate the desired robust talent pipeline. Middle schoolers are introduced early to the occupations and base skill training in Career Connections Labs, an example of a spoke. They are then connected in high school to expanded career and technical education (CTE) courses, industry certification programs and dual-enrollment training opportunities with higher education partners. Finally, students may progress to advanced level training at a hub educational provider.
