The Athens Community Career Academy, in partnership with CCSD's Department of Human Resources and faculty from the University of Georgia Mary Frances Early College of Education, has been named a recipient of the Cultivating Teachers Grant through the Georgia Department of Education.

GaDOE has awarded $350,000 for the 2023-24 school year to 38 public school districts across the state for teacher professional learning and recruitment for pathway expansion and support.

“We are committed to providing support for programs cultivating the next generation of Georgia educators,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “Teaching is the only profession that impacts all other professions, and we want to ensure we provide the best educational opportunities for students who wish to become teachers.”

CCSD was one of the districts to receive the maximum $10,000 grant amount and intends to use the grant funds to develop and implement a comprehensive recruitment plan for the Teaching as a Profession Pathway at ACCA, which will include outreach to elementary and middle school students, a screening process to identify ninth- and 10th-grade students who demonstrate dispositions aligned with the teaching profession, and the launching of an aspiring teachers summer retreat program for middle and high school students.

Teaching as a Profession is one of more than 100 Career Pathways available to Georgia students through the Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education program. Career Pathways allow students to learn skills for real-world careers and earn recognized industry credentials. 

You can learn more about ACCA's Teaching as a Profession Pathway here.