Students Receive $200,000 Grant for “Build It-Yourself” Reusable Electric Vehicle Kit

CONCORD- The New Hampshire Department of Education, Bureau of Career and Technical Education (CTE) announced today the award of four grants totaling $200,000 for CTE students to build electric vehicles. In a partnership with The Switch Lab, each CTE center will be able to purchase a reusable kit to build a street legal electric car.

The new electric vehicle program includes not only the kit to build the car, but in-depth curriculum allowing students to work as a team, while mastering real-world skills, including electrical engineering, physics, and car design.

The four CTE Centers participating in the initial program are:

• Mt. Washington Valley Career and Technical Center- Conway, NH
• Dover Regional Career and Technical Center- Dover, NH
• Nashua Technology Center- Nashua, NH
• Region 14 Applied Technology Center- Peterborough, NH

“It is very exciting to see our partnership with The Switch Labs come to life and be able to deliver another engaging, career pathway-oriented learning opportunity to students,” said Frank Edelblut, Commissioner of Education. “I know Elon Musk is looking for talented and equipped students to work on the Tesla line of cars. Coming through this program, these students will be ready for real 21st century workforce challenges!”

Career and Technical Education offers middle and high school students the chance to explore career opportunities and receive experiential and technical training that prepares them for college and future careers. Currently, New Hampshire has 28 Career and Technical Education Centers serving over 9,300 students.

“As electric vehicles increase in popularity, it is important that our graduating students are equipped to work in that field,” said Eric Frauwirth, Administrator of the Bureau of Career Development. “Through this program, each school will receive a kit to build a street-legal electric car, along with all of the educational materials and professional development training for the teachers. The goal is for students and teachers from multiple CTE programs (auto, engineering, electrical, etc.) to work together on the car build.”