Tech camp morphs into tech high

With $1.2 million in seed money from New York state and the New Technology Foundation, Tech Valley Summer Camp is soon to be Tech Valley High, reports The Times-Union.

Next spring, 30 eighth graders will attend a new public school that will focus on math, science and technology. For the first two years, the new school will be located at MapInfo's headquarters at Rensselaer Technology Park.

Organizers plan to move the school to its own building preferably on a business park campus where the students will be able to interact with high-tech companies.

The focus will be on exposing students to high-tech subjects such as biotechnology, nanotechnology, information technology, energy technology and advanced materials, while still adhering to the state standards. Students will work on projects in teams and use the latest computers and technology.

"The workplace has changed dramatically," said James Baldwin, district superintendent for Questar III, a state board of cooperative educational services, or BOCES, that serves school districts in Rensselaer, Columbia and Greene counties. "We're creating a school that reflects the 21st century workplace."