In the northeast corner of Alabama, a new teaching and degree pathway is helping high school students turn their career goals into reality – while still in high school.
In “Low-cost Alabama program takes new approach to train teachers: ‘Transformational,’” Rebecca Griesbach of AL.com’s Education Lab details Albertville City Schools’ first-of-its-kind Career and Technical Education (CTE) program, built in partnership with Reach University and Snead State Community College.
The program expands Albertville City’s current efforts with Reach to grow a pipeline of qualified, bilingual teachers who come directly from the community. Now, this partnership will expand from serving school employees to include high school students.
For students like Poncio Sapon, the program is already changing lives.
“I was like, ‘The Lord heard my prayers,’” he shared. “It’s helping a lot of us, because lots of us do also go through the same struggles or worries.”
By combining dual enrollment classes, hands-on experience, and a clear path to a debt-free bachelor’s degree, this program is removing common barriers that often keep multilingual and first-generation students from pursuing teaching careers.
As Superintendent Bart Reeves put it, the program isn’t just about addressing teacher shortages — it’s about building opportunity:
“This can be transformational for our community,” said Superintendent Reeves.
Reach University’s Apprenticeship Degree is rooted in a rigorous liberal studies education aligned with job-embedded learning, where working adults earn their degrees while gaining classroom experience.
This CTE initiative brings that same philosophy to aspiring educators earlier than ever, giving them the opportunity to earn an associate degree from Snead State before graduating high school, then complete their Reach bachelor’s degree within two years while working in Albertville City Schools and training to become job-ready teachers.
“We need to be sharing this [program] with every high school student in Alabama,” said Dr. Heath Grimes of Reach University.
“In just a few short months, a cohort of recently graduated seniors will trade in their backpacks for employee badges as they start work at their alma mater. And they don’t plan on leaving any time soon.
“I wouldn’t know where else to go," Bernabe Bautista said. "My heart and soul is here."
All images care of Rebecca Griesbach at AL.com
