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Gwinnett County Public Schools
Mercer University to offer GCPS teachers opportunity to earn advanced degrees

Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS) and Mercer University are teaming up once again to provide teachers with continuing education opportunities. Mercer is offering a Bachelor of Science in Education (B.S. Ed.) program and a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) at no cost. GCPS employees are not responsible for tuition, fees, or books.

The B.S. Ed is designed for individuals who:

  • Do not yet have a degree and are interested in specializing in Early Learning and Development (ELAD). The B.S. Ed. will lead to certification in pre-K and Kindergarten, with embedded Special Education Preschool endorsement.
  • Have a degree but are interested in only taking coursework required to become a certified teacher.

The MAT is designed for individuals who:

  • Have a passing Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educations®(GACE) Content Assessment in Middle Grades, Secondary, or P-12 education.
  • Have successfully completed a specified number of semester hours of content area coursework earned with a bachelor's degree or higher from a GaPSC-approved institution.
  • The MAT will lead to certification in middle grades education (4-8), secondary education (6-12), or P-12 education, with an embedded Computer Science endorsement.

GCPS’ Chief Human Resources Officer Cathy Hardin is excited about the program. “The Mercer degree programs will help to equip our teachers with the necessary content knowledge and instructional strategies to impact student achievement positively,” Mrs. Hardin shares. “The paraprofessional to Bachelor's program further enhances our Grow Your Own teacher talent pipeline.”

These programs of study are offered in a blended format of in-person, asynchronous, and synchronous online courses. Individuals interested in the ELAD option may begin classes in October 2023, January 2024, or March 2024. This program takes a minimum of 24 months to complete. MAT candidates may start in October 2023 or March 2024 and will finish in 18-24 months.

This opportunity is the latest offering created from the GCPS and Mercer University partnership. “We are thrilled to partner with Mercer as we know this will provide an opportunity for professional development which will benefit both our teachers and students,” Mrs. Hardin says. “This partnership will give GCPS yet another tool to support and retain teachers as well as those who aspire to be teachers, which will lead to improved classroom results.”