George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology
George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology, also known just as the Carver Center is a Baltimore County-wide public magnet high school originally established in 1992 as one of three geographically spread technology high schools,. The Central Technical High School, was located in Towson, the county seat in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. In any given year, just under 1,000 students attend, and typical class size is just under 20. The high school is primarily known for its eleven "Primes", for which students must apply in order to be accepted to the school. The school is distinguished in many categories, mainly its many art achievements.
Students from all of the middle schools throughout Baltimore County, as well as those who were "homeschooled", can apply to attend Carver Center, although it may be much farther from their houses and communities than their home regional/neighborhood high school. Admission is based on a combination of an audition and a lottery.
Name change and historical precedents
At the May, 2008, meeting of the Board of Education for the Baltimore County Public Schools, it was decided that upon next school year, The previously renamed "Carver Center for Arts and Technology" would become known as "George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology". This breaks the general policy of BCPS of not naming schools with the first names of people rather opting towards the previous example of using only last names such as in the example of Franklin High School in the Reisterstown area in the northwest Baltimore County or the current Carver Center.However, upon examination of the history of the Carver Center, the board made the decision to change and use the full name in honor of the school's history as a previously racially segregated school for, young African Americans and to continue to recognize not only the famous American George Washington Carver,, himself who was a scientist, writer, and artist, but also the esteem he was held in by Baltimore County's then under-recognized black citizens who chose to name their first openly attended public high school available to them to entitle their school with his name as the then "George Washington Carver High School". Therefore, his name is fitting to be continued on this High School, which is also dedicated to the arts and technology.
Scheduling
The Carver Center employs block scheduling: periods are eighty minutes long, with four periods a day, and each class is held every other day. The third period is divided into three thirty-minute lunch periods. There is also a 25-minute long "Wildcat Time" session each day between second and third periods, allowing students to meet with teachers for extra help, to redo assignments, or for other fun activities and meetings. Together with five minutes between every class, this means that GWCCAT's school day is slightly longer than that of the average high school.The longer class periods allow students in classes like sculpture or carpentry more time to use materials in between getting them out and cleaning them up.
Culture
The "Carver culture" focuses on respect, freedom of expression and individuality. Rules for students are less strict when compared to many area high schools. For example, Carver has a relaxed dress code, and student artwork, including nudes and the human figure, adorn the hallways. The GWCCAT student body tends to be highly motivated, competitive, disciplined, and cooperative.Primes
What makes Carver Arts and Technology unusual among Baltimore County public schools is its strong magnet system. Carver Center's magnet programs feature eleven specialty areas, or "Primes": literary arts, culinary arts, information technology/interactive media production, carpentry, cosmetology, dance, design and production, acting, vocal music, digital instrumental music, and visual arts. The visual arts prime is further divided into concentrations, including drawing and painting, multimedia, photography, sculpture, and telemedia.The Digital Instrumental Music prime was added for the 2016–2017 school year. According to Carver's webpage, "the Digital Instrumental Music program prepares students for a broad range of professional activities in the music world."
The Information Technology/Interactive Media Production prime is currently evolving from the recently removed "business" and "business - information technology/programming" primes to include classes in the Adobe Creative Suite and a greater understanding of computer science and video game design in addition to developing programming skills.
The Culinary Arts Prime allows students to gain full access to food service experience. Through this program, students can are able to receive ServSafe certification and work in a student-run restaurant called "Carver Café." According to Carver Center's website, "The senior management project is an integral element of the instructional process allowing for the application of competencies through the operation of the Carver Café which is a licensed Baltimore County food service establishment that is maintained by the students and inspected by the local health department."
As of the 2007–2008 school year General Fine Arts/Multimedia/Digital Filmmaking will hold separate auditions under the Visual Arts prime. This provides for an opportunity for students interested in the areas of filmmaking and graphic design to come to Carver Center for these areas and use these mediums to create art. All Visual Arts students will still be encouraged to take classes in drawing, painting, sculpting, photography, etc.
As of the 2001–2002 school year "Theatre" and "Technical Theatre" were advanced to become the theatre primes of "Acting" and "Design & Production." This provided an opportunity for students interested in performance, design, theatre management and administration, technique, etc. to study these fields without the common stereotypes or restrictions of "actors" or "techies." During the 2005–2006 school year, "Vocal Music" was considered to be renamed "Singing".
The Literary Arts Prime educates students on the many forms of writing. Literary students take mandatory courses that include the history of writing and the professional world of writing. Students also have the option to take electives in poetry, media writing, the yearbook, and fiction. During their senior year, students work on their “senior thesis,” which is a book students publish in the spring of their senior year. The prime is distinguished in their writing awards, especially in Scholastics Art & Writing, where they have claimed over half of the regional awards. Literary arts controls the production of Catalyst, Synergy, and the school yearbook.
Academics
George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology received a 71.8 out of a possible 90 points on the 2018-2019 Maryland State Department of Education Report Card and received a 5 out of 5 star rating, ranking in the 92nd percentile among all Maryland schools.Students
The 2019–2020 enrollment at The George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology was 961 students.Athletics
The following sports are available at Carver:- Basketball
- Golf
- Volleyball
- Tennis
- Baseball
- Softball
- Soccer
- Lacrosse
- Field hockey
- Cross country
- Wrestling
- Indoor track
- Track and field
- Cheerleading
- Badminton
Girls softball
On May 9, 2023, the girls' varsity softball team won the 2023 Baltimore County softball championship, with a 6-5 win against the Eastern Tech Mavericks.
Girls soccer
The girls' varsity soccer team has been division champions for the past three years and came in second on the regional level.
Girls lacrosse
The girls' varsity lacrosse team has also been division champs the past three years.
Boys soccer
The boys' varsity soccer team had posted a 6–6 record in the fall of 2012, avoiding a losing record for the first time in decades.
Golf
The varsity golf team won an award for having the highest GPA of any of the fall sports teams in Baltimore County.
Cross country
Both Boys' and Girls’ Cross Country teams won the Region 1A Championships in 2023 and 2024. They were honored with the Al Smith Sportsmanship Award at the State Championship the same year. In 2025, Carver Center’s Maren Blanks won the title of Girls’ 1A State Champion, earning the first state title in Carver Center history.
Track and field
Carver has an Indoor Track Team, which competes during the winter season, and a spring Track and Field team. The Track and Field Teams boasts a number of competitive athletes who have gone on to compete at the collegiate level in the NCAA.
Carver's football team was disbanded in 1998, after a few unsuccessful years, partly due to low interest and partly because the old football field was one yard too short. When the new school building was opened in 2012, new fields were created, including a full-sized football field on athletic turf. Although Carver does not have a football team, it does hold an annual homecoming dance. The dance is run by the Student Government Association and is usually a fundraiser for the SGA.
State championships
The George Washington Carver Center for the Arts and Technology is the only high school in the Baltimore County Public Schools system that has never won a team State Championship in any sport.Other teams
Carver also has a Model United Nations program that participates in the Towson University-BCPS Model United Nations Conference, Johns Hopkins Model United Nations Conference, and Baltimore Area Model United Nations Conference. Within the past few years, the Model United Nations team has collected many awards from the Towson University Model UN Conference and Baltimore Area Model UN Conference. Students have also been accepted into application-based ad hoc committees at JHUMUNC.A new Mock Trial team is slowly blossoming. Carver has a kinetic sculpture/engineering club, and an "It's Academic" TV quiz show team, which participates on local station WJZ-TV, Channel 13.
In addition, CCAT's Future Business Leaders of America, FBLA-PBL Chapter has had multiple students qualify for the National Leadership Conference for the past six years.
The Culinary Arts Prime has also recently won the Statewide competition for ProStart and traveled to Nationals for the second year in a row.
The center also has a Vex Robotics team competing in all major competitions in the region.