North Carolina A&T State University opened the doors of Smith Hall to 50 high school freshmen on Aug. 7.

Smith Hall will house the STEM Early College at N.C. A&T, a magnet high school geared toward highly motivated and high-performing high school students who have demonstrated interest in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math.

All students entering the Early College will take two years of honors and advanced placement (AP) courses along with STEM curriculum incorporated courses such as robotics and scientific visualization. As juniors and seniors, the students will fully integrate into college courses and focus on one of three STEM pathways – biomedical sciences, renewable energy and engineering.

The program will add 50 freshmen each year until the maximum population of 200 is reached. This is the second high school located on A&T’s campus. A&T is also home to the Middle College at N.C. A&T, which posted a 100 percent graduation rate for the class of 2012.