Fiber optics course planned at LFCC with grant money

WINCHESTER — Lord Fairfax Community College has been awarded $40,000 in grants to create a fiber optics certification program and to improve college readiness for local high school students.

LFCC received two grants through the Virginia Community College System (VCCS). A combined 24 grants were handed out for the current academic year to 17 of the state’s 23 community colleges.

The first project — awarded $24,000 — will bring together teachers and counselors from Frederick County Public Schools and developmental faculty from LFCC to discuss and improve college readiness standards.

The high school teachers will take a college placement test and figure out gaps between their curriculum and the test. LFCC faculty will then work with the teachers to fill those gaps.

This project will allow students to be prepared to enter the correct math and English courses when they enter LFCC, with the hope that students achieve higher scores on placement testing and thus reduce time spent in developmental courses.

“This is to prepare students for success,” said Brenda Byard, director of high school outreach and associate dean of business and technologies. “We want students to transition from secondary to post-secondary seamlessly.”

The project also aims to expand lab and tutoring services in math and English.

With a $16,000 grant, LFCC will purchase equipment and curriculum to offer training programs for people to become fiber-optic certified technicians. The industry is expected to have 21,900 new jobs available in the next seven years.

— Contact Rebecca Layne at rlayne@winchesterstar.com