CENTRAL VA. TRAINING CTR.

The **Central Virginia Training Center (CVTC)**, located at 521 Colony Road in Madison Heights, Virginia, was a state-run residential facility that served individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities for over a century. Established in 1910 as the Virginia State Colony for Epileptics and Feebleminded, the institution functioned for decades as a large-scale campus dedicated to the housing and medical care of its residents. Over the years, the facility underwent significant shifts in focus, moving from a custodial model toward therapeutic rehabilitation and community-integrated services as part of a national trend to deinstitutionalize disability care.

In its later years, the CVTC became the subject of a landmark U.S. Department of Justice investigation and a subsequent settlement agreement that mandated the transition of residents into community-based settings. Following a long-term plan to phase out large residential institutions in favor of more personalized, home-like environments, the facility officially closed its doors in 2020. Today, the site stands as a significant historical landmark in the Commonwealth’s social history, marking the end of an era in Virginia’s approach to mental health and disability services.