Governor's School

The Governor’s School program at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise is a two-week residential program for rising high school sophomores, juniors and seniors who have demonstrated significant effort and achievement in the sciences. 

The program is sponsored by the Virginia Department of Education and UVA Wise and is completely free of charge.

Students will live in the College’s residential halls for the first week, with the second week being spent camping at the Oxbow Center’s Clinch River Ecological Education Center (CREEC) in St. Paul, Virginia. 

Mornings are typically spent in the field or laboratory conducting experiments. Students will be loaned iPads so that they can utilize technology to learn. Some of the general topics that will be covered are ecology, forestry, botany, geology, paleontology, environmental microbiology and more. Students will also have the opportunity to participate in several fun, educational activities and fieldtrips such as going on a cave tour at Natural Tunnel State Park!

Students are chaperoned by program instructors and residential counselors. All program participants are expected to sign and uphold a student code-of-conduct. 

The program serves school divisions in Wise, Scott, Lee, Dickenson, Buchanan, Bland, Carroll, Giles, Grayson, Pulaski, Russell, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, Wythe, Floyd and Patrick counties. The cities of Norton, Radford, Bristol, and Galax are also included. Students are expected to have demonstrated strong work in the natural sciences, as well as a positive attitude and a strong work ethic. The program serves 24 students in total. 

The Governor’s School program at UVA Wise does not discriminate with regard to special populations including students of minority, ethnic composition, disadvantaged socioeconomic conditions, and/or handicapping conditions.