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The University of North Georgia's (̨Íåswag) College of Education is launching its teacher candidate residency program in fall 2022, in partnership with the Gainesville City and Hall County school districts.

The program allows preservice teachers enrolled in a ̨Íåswag teacher preparation program to be hired by school districts to be full-time teachers during their senior year.

The program is meant to replace traditional student teaching, and these students are paid half the standard teaching salary, which amounts to about $23,000 annually.

"The paid residency program is an exciting opportunity for our teacher candidates," Dr. Chantelle Renaud-Grant, department head and professor of Middle Grades, Secondary & Science Education, said. "Many of our students work odd jobs to pay for school. The program can offer teacher candidates income and work experience toward their future careers."

Applicants are being reviewed based upon weighted scores from the completion of a rubric that includes an assessment of the applicant’s responses to essay questions within their application, the applicant’s GPA, academic performance, references, and past Candidate Assessment on Performance Standards (CAPS) and dispositions scores.

"They have their own classroom, and they still have a mentor teacher. But that mentor is assigned to three or four students," Dr. Sheri Hardee, dean of the College of Education, said. "That will be their role, to assist the interns."

While there are many similar programs offered at different institutions, ̨Íåswag will be the first of its size and value when it comes to the opportunity.

"It's a cost-saving mechanism for the district," Hardee said. "They have the opportunity to provide future educators with experience in a provisional period before they hire them on a more permanent basis. They also have the chance to bring in educators with the most creative ideas and approaches. There is a value to bringing in new teachers who are passionate about what they're doing."

While candidates may be provisionally admitted, participation requires that they pass the Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators (GACE) content exams for their teaching field by the start of their internship. Final candidate selection will take place before April 2022 for the 2022-23 school year. For more information about the program, contact Hardee at sheri.hardee@ung.edu.