CABELL COUNTY, W.Va. –High school students in Cabell County who attend the Career Technology Center will soon have a new facility for their classes.

Front hallway

Members of the State Board of Education, local board, and students came together Monday afternoon to get a sneak peek inside the new Woody Williams Center for Advanced Learning and Careers. The new facility is located on the site of the former Sears inside the Huntington Mall in Barboursville.

The career center offers 15 courses for high school students including Auto Mechanics, Building Maintenance, Carpentry, Coding App/Design Game, Collision Repair, Electrical Technology, Entrepreneurship, Graphic Design, Health Sciences, HVAC, Law & Public Safety, Machine Tool Trades, Pre-Cosmetology, and Welding. They will also offer two adult only courses including LPN and Medical Assisting. Each course is two years long and available for ninth through 12th graders.

Construction of the new two-story, 232,000-square-foot building began in November 2023. Construction is being carried out by Neighborgall Construction, with the design handled by ZMM Architects and Engineers.

Cabell County Schools Superintendent Tim Hardesty said they expect to be done with construction in November so they can begin moving in furniture and equipment.

He said they will be bringing the classes that are currently offered at the Cabell County Career Technology Center over in January. Then in the fall they should be bringing over the classes from Cabell Midland and Huntington High Schools.

Hardesty said it’s exciting to be able to give students these opportunities.

“This is such an amazing opportunity for all of us to have this to where we can offer our students so many opportunities, so many experiences to prepare them for their futures,” he said.

The new facility was funded by the Cabell County Schools bond that the community voted to pass.

While in programs at the center, students get to experience professional training, hear from field-based experts, have authentic learning through simulated workplace and field work, job placement opportunities, and get to earn their certifications and licenses.

Sophomore Annabelle Fryer is in her second year in the Law and Public Safety course at the center.

Simulation room for the Law and Public Safety classroom

She said the new facility opens the door for growth for the course.

“This new building is going to be a great opportunity because our whole space is opening up and we’re actually adding a 911 dispatch center, so right now we just have our classroom and our simulation room, and we work on crime scenes, and all of the live actions with everything, emergency’s and stuff with our guns, and we shoot and target practice and stuff,” Fryer said.

“Along with the 911 dispatch center, she said the simulation room will be larger and will include one-way glass, allowing students outside the room to observe and learn while their classmates are participating inside.

Principal/Director for the current Cabell County Career Technology Center Melissa Ash said they were able to get students inside the building since the first day construction began.

She said it’s exciting to be able to see how they are able to give students the opportunity to get ready for jobs after school.

“It just gives me a lot of joy that we’re making things possible for the students and opening those for them to go,” Ash said. “So, we’re the steppingstone, we’re the place they start, and we can’t wait to see where they finish.”

Along with the classrooms and simulations, the facility also features a gymnasium, cafeteria, and a library.

Automotive Tech classroom

Hardesty said this building will not only serve high school students but also honor all those who helped make the center a reality.

“This building will service, our high school students, in addition to a lot of adult programs that we offer here, that will help our society, our consumers here, the people who actually put money behind this project to be able to access programs here so they will be able to gain employment as well,” he said.

To learn about the facility, you can visit Cabell County Schools website here.