Henrico County Public Schools will hold its annual Career and Technical Education Letter-of-Intent Signing Day on April 24 to honor high school seniors entering the workforce equipped with skills they’ve learned at the division’s Advanced Career Education Centers. Students will gather with representatives of their future employers to sign agreements making their plans official. Since its 2018 debut, the trendsetting event has inspired similar celebrations in 49 states and Canada.
As in past years, the sixth edition of CTE Letter-of-Intent Signing Day will be held at Junior Achievement Finance Park, on the third floor of Henrico County Public Library’s Libbie Mill location. There will be limited public attendance, with space reserved for families, guests and members of the media. The event will be livestreamed, with a link available at www.henricoschools.us.
HCPS Career and Technical Education Letter-of-Intent Signing Day
Who: Members of the media are invited to attend.
When: April 24 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
Where: Libbie Mill Library (Junior Achievement Finance Park, third floor), 2100 Libbie Lake East St., Henrico, VA 23230
Career and Technical Education Letter-of-Intent Signing Day is patterned after ceremonies that honor high school athletes as they gather in gyms to sign letters-of-intent to play for college athletic programs. HCPS seniors entering the workforce with industry credentials will sign letters-of-intent, alongside representatives of their future employers. The letters outline what students must do before and during employment, what the employer will provide in pay and training, and an estimate of the position’s value. As with similar events for athletes, students will don a hat or clothing with the employer’s logo.
In 2023 the Virginia General Assembly recognized Henrico County Public Schools for its role in popularizing the concept and designated the fourth Wednesday in April each year as Career and Technical Education Letter-of-Intent Signing Day. When the school division launched the concept in March 2018, it elicited hundreds of calls from other school divisions asking for advice on replicating the idea. The HCPS event was featured on CNN Headline News, Fox News and Today.com