American boxer Sugar Ray Leonard claimed, “Boxing is the ultimate challenge. There’s nothing that compares to testing yourself the way you do every time you step into the ring.”

As Leonard’s words suggest, gifted athletes need rigorous challenges to achieve their full potential. Without testing limits and pushing beyond them, athletes may never have the opportunity to discover what they can accomplish.

This same principle holds true for talented students. Recognizing that some students thrive on strenuous challenges and have academic needs that differ from their age-level peers, Virginia instituted the Governor’s School program in 1973.

Southside Virginia Community College is proud to host one of those schools, the Governor’s School of Southside Virginia. GSSV’s student body includes nearly two hundred academically skilled juniors and seniors. These young adults thrive in a learning environment that is more independent than a traditional high school setting, and they tackle an interdisciplinary curriculum that includes conducting a two-year research project.

GSSV students spend part of the school day on the SVCC campus. They also participate as dually enrolled students in college-level courses offered at their home high schools. These courses help round out the curriculum in a way that enables students to earn both a high school diploma and Associates degree when they graduate.

The GSSV application process begins during the fall of a student’s 10th grade year. In determining admission, participating school divisions follow a matrix that considers teacher recommendations and each applicant’s test results, grade point average, and writing ability.

Students can get more information about the Governor’s School of Southside Virginia by contacting GSSV Director Laurie Michaelson at 434-736-2086.

Dr. Al Roberts is president of Southside Virginia Community College. He can be reached via email at al.roberts@southside.edu.