A Hall County charter school is slated to receive some of the money handed down in a $19.4 million competitive grant program, according to an announcement by Gov. Nathan Deal today.

The Regional Charter Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics Academy in North Hall will be one of five schools in the state to receive money from the Innovation Fund of Georgia's Race to the Top plan.

The academy is expected to be the first energy-focused high school in the state. The state grant will put $50,000 toward its startup.

A statement from the governor said the local project was chosen because of its cutting-edge approach to education.

"The projects selected for awards during this first round represent truly innovative and collaborative approaches to educating students," Deal said in the statement. "We look forward to scaling the best of these practices to other schools across the state."

The STEM Academy will open in 2012 at North Hall High School, drawing between 400 and 600 students from Hall, Lumpkin and White counties.

The STEM program is a partnership with North Georgia College and State University that promises to offer instruction "anytime, anywhere," according to school district officials.

When they applied for the grant in May, school officials said their partnerships with neighboring school systems would improve their chances of securing funding for the academy.