Every year, there are students who strive their best for success and a reputable status. They outdo their fellow peers to receive both recognition and a chance at many impressive and unique opportunities.

One of the opportunities offered to students are Governor’s Schools. These are esteemed summer programs that focus on different areas of study and help prepare students for a college lifestyle. Even though only one Central student attended a Governor’s School this year, Central is still proud of his success and learning.

Senior Grant Scutt took part of the Governor’s School for the Scientific Exploration of Tennessee Heritage, which took place July 2-28. In order to attend, Scutt had to maintain his grades and reputation.

‘The programs are academically demanding and require students who are high achievers. Eligible students typically rank in the top of their high school class in academic performance/capability or are highly talented in the arts,” the 2019 Governor’s School website states.

Scutt desired to attend the school to better himself and his knowledge. Central’s former gifted teacher, Danielle Hooper, also influenced his decision. In order to get into the school, he wrote essays and received recommendations from his teachers. He applied during his junior year, but was not accepted until his senior year.  Scutt then received a scholarship from East Tennessee State University (ETSU) in order to attend.

“Before I went, I wanted to go to Governor’s School because it sounded like a really new and exciting way to learn something and I thought it was a resume builder. There was also a little bit of Ms. Hooper pushing me to do it, too,” Scutt said.

There are many different Governor’s Schools students can choose from. There are schools completely focused on the arts, engineering, or even teaching. However, Scutt chose a school that focused on Tennessee history, mainly in East Tennessee.

“I chose the Governor’s School I wanted to go to for a pretty lame reason. I went because it sounded fun. A lot of the other Governor’s schools I looked at had six or seven hours of lecture a day, and I thought that just sounded like regular school. So when I heard that Governor’s school had hiking and tours of historical towns and hands-on experiences and things like that, I thought it sounded really cool,” Scutt stated.

Scutt’s Governor’s school was at ETSU, so he stayed in Johnson City at Lucille Clement Hall on ETSU’s campus during the summer. On campus, there were two hours of history class and experienced speakers who came in to teach. Off campus, the students hiked to places like Roan Mountain, and visited towns and locations that pertained to what they were learning about.

Scutt’s experience offered him many opportunities and was a chance of a lifetime. Besides learning about Tennessee and writing weekly papers, he learned about self-discipline and how to work with people. Scutt was also happy to follow the tradition of attending, after former Governor’s School and Central student, Preston Fore, attended.

“I really, really enjoyed the experience. I met 29 of the best people I have ever known there, and I got some really nice life experiences like hiking on Roan Mountain and building a log cabin basically from scratch. I know it sounds cliche, but I really do believe it was a life-changing experience,” Scutt concluded.