Hamilton County school officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday evening at Lookout Valley Middle High to celebrate the opening of the latest future-ready institute: the Novonix Institute of Advanced Battery Technology.
Headquartered in Brisbane, Australia, Novonix develops cutting-edge electric vehicle and grid energy battery technology. The company opened the U.S.'s first synthetic graphite production plant in Chattanooga last year and began operations this spring.
The high school program will promote science, technology, engineering and mathematics with a highly specialized curriculum. To date, Novonix has invested $500,000 to hire staff and renovate the school's former auto body shop into an interactive classroom.
In the program students will receive in-lab training, safety tutorials, on-job shadowing with Novonix employees and a guaranteed interview with Novonix upon graduation.
(READ MORE: Chattanooga's Tyner Academy throws future-ready kickoff event)
The president of Novonix, Daniel Deas, gave opening remarks.
"There will be opportunities (at Novonix) for students coming out of the school," Deas said. "But that is not our purpose here. That is not our vision for this place. It is our sincere hope that as students move through this place, that their own vision will begin to form."
Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly also shared his thoughts, touting the economic impact of future-ready institutes.
"The demand for car batteries is through the roof," Kelly said. "We will be, here in Chattanooga at the tip of the spear of economic patriotism, bringing onshore manufacturing and critical supply chains back to this country."
Deputy Hamilton County Mayor Tucker McClendon, state Sen. Todd Gardenhire, Rep. Yusuf Hakeem and Superintendent Justin Robertson also spoke during the event.
The partnership marks the 12th branded future-ready institute for Hamilton County Schools, which also include EPB, CHI Memorial, U.S. Xpress and Erlanger. Overall, the district has 29 institutes offered at 13 highs schools.
With branded partnership, an organization must commit to, at least, $50,000 per year for five years, Future Ready Students Director Olivia Bagby said by phone.
How the companies choose which schools will home their institutes depends on several factors, Bagby said. Sometimes it's about geographic proximity to the company itself, other times it's because a future-ready institute already exists and needs elevating with a branded partnership.
The institutes prepare students for post-secondary education by offering college credits or preparing students to join the workforce right after high school by offering certifications or certain skill sets.
"We strive to provide our students with opportunities to earn post-secondary credentials while still in high school," Bagby said. "So, whether that is dual enrollment opportunities, AP (Advanced Placement) opportunities, industry certifications, all of those are happening seamlessly throughout our future-ready institutes."
The institutes prepare students for aviation at Brainerd High, business leadership at Hixson High, robotics and welding at The Howard School and teaching at Tyner Academy, among many other options. Four of the institutes focus on aspects of construction careers, and five focus on aspects of engineering.
Hamilton County Schools has significantly expanded the number of future-ready institutes offered at the district in just five years. But Bagby said this doesn't mean the district is focusing more on preparing students for trades and less for college.
"Future-ready institutes has no expectation that a student goes to work right after high school," she said. "What we are providing with future-ready institutes is ensuring that the students have the education to understand and know all of their opportunities."
Students are never asked to "sign on the dotted line," she said, or commit to a career with any of the companies.
"We prepare them for whatever decision that they choose to make as they exit their senior year," Bagby said. "We ensure that the students have all the credits that they need to go to a four-year university or they have all the credentials they need if they decide to go directly into the workforce, but we want to support all opportunities."
Contact Carmen Nesbitt at cnesbitt@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6327. Follow her on Twitter @carmen_nesbitt.