Norfolk County Agricultural High School has been awarded a $3.5 million state capital grant, the largest in the school's history, to expand career technical education opportunities and upgrade facilities.

The funding will support a $2.45 million renovation and expansion of the Walpole campus, including larger laboratory spaces expected to create capacity for about 100 additional students in Plant Science and Environmental Science programs.

Another $550,000 will fund new greenhouses equipped with updated agricultural technology, while $350,000 will go toward multipurpose classrooms and modular computer labs for both daytime students and adult workforce training programs offered evenings and weekends.

School officials said the expanded facilities will also allow Norfolk Aggie to offer after-school and weekend programming to an additional 60 to 80 high school students annually from surrounding communities, along with credentialing opportunities for 30 to 40 adult learners and incumbent workers through Commonwealth Corporation training partnerships.

"This grant allows Norfolk Aggie to grow and help our graduates connect with high-paying, high-demand jobs," Superintendent-Director Jeremy Guay said.

Norfolk Aggie was among 28 schools statewide to receive a share of more than $70 million in capital grants announced April 30 by the Healey-Driscoll administration.

Norfolk Aggie enrolls more than 600 students from Norfolk County and more than 40 out-of-county communities on its 365-acre campus in Walpole.