The Center for Information Technology (CIT) at Deep Run High School, located in Glen Allen, Virginia, is a highly selective specialty center for students pursuing a passion in technology. Here at the CIT, we strive to develop our students with both advanced technical skills and the soft skills necessary to complete real-world projects and to prepare them for success in all of their future endeavors. The core values that we aim to instill in CIT students are respect and integrity, both of which are highly emphasized through our rigorous curriculum and projects.
The CIT curriculum consists of engaging and challenging courses that allow students to go above and beyond their limits. These classes and our hallmark experiences lay the foundation needed to prepare students for higher education and careers in information technology. CIT Alumni regularly communicate how well prepared they were for college and beyond because of their courses and experiences in the CIT.
Not only does the CIT provide IT/CS-specific classes, but it also provides opportunities for students to obtain work experience through internships with various community partners. One highlight of students’ experience at the CIT is the Community Innovation Technology (CIT) projects. In groups, sophomore and junior students work with outside organizations to complete a project that is beneficial to the community. In these three month projects, students create technical solutions for their clients utilizing the Scrum project management methodology, exposing them to the many facets of the professional world. Prior to the students’ senior year at the CIT, they participate in a Senior Internship, giving them a chance to see what an IT career would be like and allowing them to exercise their previously learned project management and technical skills and develop new professional skills as well.
Finally, students and faculty in the CIT form a tight-knit community. Various events are held throughout the year, such as the Thanksgiving potluck and field trips, where students can get together to unwind and have fun as a community. Students in the CIT are also well-rounded and participate in numerous CIT-related extracurriculars, like Girls of CIT, and non-CIT-related extracurriculars, like Blue Cheese Robotics, marching band, school sports, and multiple prestigious honors societies.
