The program introduces seventh- and eighth-grade students to manufacturing careers through hands-on activities.
At the ribbon cutting were U.S. Rep. John McGuire, R-5th District; Virginia Sen. Mark Peake, R-Lynchburg; and Del. Wendell Walker, R-Lynchburg, who joined stem+M and Diversified Educational Systems representatives, and school board members in BMS’s new stem+M lab to hear from students in the program.
The division’s stem+M program was piloted in January at Altavista Combined and Rustburg Middle schools, and expanded this school year to William Campbell Combined and Brookville Middle schools.
It is supported by a partnership between BlueForge Alliance and DES, and is part of a larger mission to promote manufacturing careers that support the U.S. Navy’s Maritime Industrial Program. BlueForge Alliance is a nonprofit that supports the U.S. defense industrial base, while DES provides solutions for educational, research and industrial environments.
“There is a workforce shortage in the area of manufacturing,” CCPS Superintendent Clayton Stanley said at the event. “How can we begin to introduce these skills to middle schoolers?”
He said CCPS felt it had a strong Career and Technical Education program for high school students, but it wanted to find ways to introduce those skills to younger students.
“How can we come up with something at all four of our middle schools that we know is the same, it’s high-quality, and we’re teaching real workforce skills?” Stanley said.
Stem+M President Allison Heider said middle school is when students really start to think about who they want to be and what courses they’ll take in high school.
“For us, starting in middle school, the stem+M program is really important to give students exposure to those manufacturing careers that they may not have thought of,” Heider said.
CCPS Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Amy Hale said the division also knows manufacturing is a major strength in Campbell County.
Manufacturing jobs comprise 23.8% of employment in the county, according to the Campbell County Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy 2025 update.
“The three main industries for us are education, manufacturing and health,” Hale said. “So, that’s why we truly value this program.”
McGuire said a program like this is important because middle school is where students will build a foundation for the rest of their lives.
“We need you,” McGuire told BMS students. “And there are many ways to provide for your family and yourself in this society, and what a great way to get an early start.”
Peake said there needs to be more programs like this throughout the commonwealth and the country.
“There are tons and tons of jobs out there that we don’t have skilled and qualified people available to fill them,” he said. “And we’ve got to do it.”
Walker told the students he knows they are the hope of the future.
“So many employers are capturing your skills and your talents that you’re learning now to keep the industries and manufacturing in America going forward,” Walker said.
BMS STEM teacher Carrie Wilmer said stem+M helps students gain confidence.
She said many students are intimidated by the equipment at first.
“Until you actually get yourself in front of things and look at it and just try, you won’t know what you’re capable of,” Wilmer said. “So, a lot of them have taken that into consideration, and they go ahead and they just try.”
Isaac Hart, an eighth-grade student at BMS, told those in attendance about the car he made out of sticks, wheels and rubber bands on the first day of class.
Hart also shared the wires he and his classmates had to bend into specific shapes with pliers. He said from that assignment, he learned how to be precise.
Jhourni Cooks spoke about an assignment where she compared measuring objects with a ruler and a tape measure. She said reflection was also part of the assignment.
“We had to write down what we learned from this class, what we would like to learn and what we already knew before,” Cooks said.
Carrie Curtis, the workforce development education initiatives lead at the Maritime Industrial Base program, told BMS students the U.S. Navy is funding labs like this throughout the division and country to combat the manufacturing workforce shortage.
“It’s really, really special that we’re able to fund labs like this to start planting those seeds about manufacturing, about working with your hands, working with your brain,” she said. “Combining all of that great stuff that you’re learning in history class and math class and science class and English class, even, to apply it to a real-world issue and a real-world problem that you are going to be capable of solving.”
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