GA STEM Teacher Preparation

Overview

Georgia Residency for Educating Amazing Teachers

A partnership between SREB and Georgia College & State University, GREAT was funded by the Teacher Quality Partnership program of the U.S. Department of Education. The program recruited college graduates in fields other than education, especially those interested in teaching science, technology, engineering or math.

Future teachers gained classroom teaching experience under the guidance of a mentor teacher while completing an online 36-credit Master of Arts in Teaching at GCSU — all while earning a first-year teacher’s salary and full health care benefits.

The grant was completed in 2024. The resident teachers were placed in middle grades classrooms in grades six through eight in rural Georgia.

Blog post Jon Schmidt-DavisApril 21, 2025

Georgia Teaching Residents Give Middle Grades STEM a Boost

Georgia Teaching Residents Give Middle Grades STEM a Boost

Curtis Martin’s dedication to teaching is reflected in the quote from Victor Hugo displayed in Martin’s email signature: “He who opens a school door, closes a prison.”

You see, before Curtis became a Georgia math teacher, he was a correctional officer for the state of Georgia and the Houston County Sheriff’s Department. Having seen too many children end up behind bars, Martin decided to work with middle-grade students to give them opportunities that can improve their chances for success in life.