Norfolk, Virginia offers many educational opportunities. Schools, public and private, are located all over the city.

Elementary, secondary

Norfolk Public Schools The Norfolk Public Schools, also known as Norfolk City Public Schools, are the school division responsible for public education in the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. ...

, the public school system, comprises 5 high schools, 9 middle schools, 35 elementary schools, and 9 special-purpose/preschools. In 2005, Norfolk Public Schools won the $1 million Broad Prize for Urban Education award for having demonstrated, "the greatest overall performance and improvement in student achievement while reducing achievement gaps for poor and minority students". The city had previously been nominated in 2003 and 2004. There are also a number of

private schools An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British Eng ...

located in the city, the oldest of which,

Norfolk Academy Norfolk Academy (NA) is an independent co-educational day school in Norfolk, Virginia. Chartered in 1728, it is the oldest private school in Virginia and the eighth oldest school in the United States. In 1966, Norfolk Academy merged with Country D ...

, was founded in 1728.

Post Secondary

Norfolk is home to three public universities and one private. It also hosts a

community college A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior se ...

campus in downtown. *

Old Dominion University Old Dominion University (Old Dominion or ODU) is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. It was established in 1930 as the Norfolk Division of the College of William & Mary and is now one of the largest universities in Virginia w ...

- Founded as a branch of

The College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William I ...

in 1930, ODU became an independent institution in 1962 and now offers degrees in 68 undergraduate and 95 (60 masters/35 doctoral) graduate degree programs. * Eastern Virginia Medical School- Founded as a community medical school by the surrounding jurisdictions in 1973, EVMS is noted for its research into reproductive medicine and is located in the region's major medical complex in the Ghent District. *

Norfolk State University Norfolk State University (NSU) is a public historically black university in Norfolk, Virginia. It is a member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and Virginia High-Tech Partnership. History The institution was founded on September 18, 1935 ...

- The country's fifth largest majority black university, offers degrees in a wide variety of

liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically th ...

. *

Virginia Wesleyan University Virginia Wesleyan University (VWU) is a private university in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The university is nonsectarian but historically affiliated with The United Methodist Church. It enrolls 1,607 students annually in undergraduate and graduat ...

- Small private

college, shares its eastern border with the neighboring city of Virginia Beach. *

Tidewater Community College Tidewater Community College (TCC) is a public community college in South Hampton Roads, Virginia, with campuses in Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, and Virginia Beach. It is part of the Virginia Community College System and is accredit ...

- Community college offering two-year degrees and specialized training programs, located in downtown.

References

{{Norfolk, Virginia