Buford Engineering Design Academy, a laboratory school for advanced manufacturing, was developed through a partnership between the University of Virgina’s (UVa) Schools of Education and Engineering and the Charlottesville Public Schools and funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF).
The academy was developed through a project called the FabLab Classroom, an NSF Innovation Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST). The classroom provides elementary and middle school students with fabrication technologies such as computer-controlled die cutters and 3-D printers.