Captain Robert Schmid is an instructor at the Career Exploration Leadership Academy, also known as the Career Depot program within the Academy of Careers and Technology (ACT) in Raleigh County. Middle school students are accepted based on their leadership qualities and interest in hands-on, project-based learning. Project examples range from plumbing and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) to skills like taking blood pressure, electrical wiring, building maintenance, and automotive tasks. Schmid concentrates on training his students’ personal, workplace, and technical skills grounded in academics.