Education is a key factor in the city’s Vision 2001-2020 Comprehensive Plan. The plan promotes lifelong education as a way to empower residents and increase the community's skill level to ensure that both the city and the region have the necessary flexibility to attract new business and keep pace with emerging technologies. To this end, the City of Roanoke is investing its economic resources into education at every level, including the most basic. As part of a city-wide school improvement effort, the city has completed major renovations of seven elementary schools and four middle schools, and has made substantial improvements to six elementary schools. The city plans to build a new math and science school to replace the existing school, and has recently completed one of two new high schools to replace existing facilities.

To ensure that schools maintain the best possible social and learning environment, the city recently assembled a task force to study the issue of school safety and positioned city police officers at the city’s high schools to serve as student resource officers. Also, in an effort to be as proactive as possible, city social services staff work with several interdisciplinary teams at city schools to help troubled or at-risk kids.

To prepare its workforce for the new millennium and enhance the skill level of city residents, Roanoke has expanded educational and training opportunities for adults in the region. The opening of the Roanoke Higher Education Center fulfilled a 10-year effort by local business and education leaders to expand post-secondary education opportunities. Virginia Tech, University of Virginia, and 13 other educational institutions offer graduate, undergraduate and specialty degree programs. Economic development efforts such as the The Riverside Centre for Research and Technology, a 75-acre multi-building biotechnology research park being developed near downtown Roanoke, will provide approximately 2,500 jobs once completed. The project will also allow the city to diversify Roanoke’s economy, attract additional research facilities, and increase this area’s connectivity to the rest of the downtown.