RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — A new project is set to open in Southeast Raleigh geared to teach students all about the fields of science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM.
Montague Plaza will open off Rock Quarry Road in mid-October.
Developer James Montague says it will have restaurants, a barber shop, a tattoo shop and even a STEM center for middle and high school students.
“We wanted to include the STEM center because we wanted to be engrained in the community and affect the minds of the young people that are in the area,” said Montague.
He says it’s something he didn’t have growing up just a few minutes away from where the plaza sits.
The added bonus is the STEM center will be steps away from Southeast Raleigh Magnet Middle School.
“I grew up in the projects like two minutes away so I want them to feel like … if Montague can do it, I can do it as well,” said Montague.
He says he plans to create what he calls a “Path to Progress,” a paved area for students to get from school to the center.
Patricia Taylor teaches at the school.
“The students will have somewhere else that they can go other than the streets,” Taylor said. “So it’s a great opportunity for our students.”
Students enrolled in the center will get the chance to learn about the many jobs in the STEM industry.
Neil Kumar with GlobalXperts is a partner on the projects.
He says they’re taking a multi-tiered approach to get students ready for jobs.
“We will have like a basic foundational tier just to pique their interest for the high schoolers and that will include like STEM, the drones, the music, the gaming program,” said Kumar. “Next year probably would be for the college-goers. We need to get them job ready, so for them we would be providing a little bit more certified exams, so a certification on CISCO, cybersecurity, CompTIA.”
The project is almost complete. A ribbon cutting is set for October 18th.
