Republican Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has approved grants totaling $6 million for the State Board of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) to establish two new College and Career Academies.
TCSG’s colleges are Georgia’s top resource for skilled workers. As explained on the TCSG website, the organization oversees Georgia’s “technical colleges, adult literacy programs, and a host of economic and workforce development programs.” It also provides all adult Georgians with “a unified system of technical education, adult education, and customized business and industry training.”
Notably, tuition at TCSG colleges is free through Georgia’s HOPE Career Grant for individuals who pursue a career “in any one of 17 high-demand fields including computer technology, health sciences, or early childhood education.”
Using the grants approved by Governor Kemp, Central Georgia Technical College (CGTC) will partner with two local education systems to establish the MPower College and Career Academy in Monroe County and the Dooly College and Career Academy in Dooly County.
“These new academies will open doors for hardworking Georgians to pursue new opportunities and grow their skillset so that they find success in the No. 1 state for business,” the Republican Governor said. “As we continue to see unprecedented levels of job creation and investment in the Peach State, we know we need to expand our workforce to sustain our position as the best place to live, work, and raise a family. Innovative approaches like these academies will help us do that.”
The announcement comes a few months after Kemp signed a bill approving a tuition grant for students in need to help complete their college degree.
Under the bill, students who have earned at least 80% of the credits required for their degree will receive a grant of up to $2,500 to help pay their tuition.
“This marks the first needs-based education grant of its kind in Georgia,” the Republican governor said at the time. “Chairman Martin deserves a great deal of credit for making a higher education degree just that much more affordable and attainable here in our state.”
