The nation’s first motorsports boarding school has been established through a unique partnership between Virginia International Raceway (VIR) in Halifax County and the Carlisle School in Martinsville, Va.

Building on the strong business ties with motorsports industry in the region, The Academy of Motorsports seeks to create a college preparatory program specifically tailored to attract the best and brightest students interested in motorsports from around the world. While the program will initially focus on driver development and education, it will quickly expand to include engineering and other aspects of the motorsports business.

“The overarching goal of the Academy is to provide racing and academic excellence to young racers who often struggle to balance the two,” said Ted Settle, director of Virginia Tech’s Office of Economic Development and academy spokesperson. 

The Carlisle School, an International Baccalaureate World School, will offer rigorous course offerings with those focused on motorsports utilizing such assets as Virginia Tech, Old Dominion University, Virginia Institute for Performance Engineering and Research and the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research.

Students will spend mornings in academic classes at Carlisle School followed by motorsports training in the afternoon four-days per week.  Individualized training programs will be developed for each student, including on track driving, vehicle preparation, driving simulators, motorsports courses at Patrick Henry Community College, and health and fitness.