Prince George’s County Public Schools’ (PGCPS) innovative teacher academies for high school students are preparing graduates to pursue careers in education. This school year, 54 seniors completed the Teacher Academy of Maryland (TAM) program at three high schools (Laurel, Potomac and Bowie) with a total of 214 students enrolled in grades 10-12.

TAM is a Career and Technology Education (CTE) program of study that seeks to address Maryland’s persistent teacher shortages by creating a pipeline of teacher candidates. High school students begin the TAM program of study in 10th grade and complete a four-course sequence that ends in 12th grade. TAM students also have the potential to earn college credits while still in high school provided they attend a college or university that awards the credits.

“With a shortage of teachers in our state and nation, we must engage our talented young people and prepare them for these rewarding and critically important careers,” said PGCPS Chief Executive Officer Dr. Kevin M. Maxwell. “Our students are headed to colleges and universities in state and throughout the nation, where they will prepare to be the next generation of great teachers that our classrooms so desperately need.”

In addition to TAM, nearly 50 PGCPS freshman are finishing their first year in a new teacher preparation program at Prince George’s Community College (PGCC), where available seats will increase to 75 in the fall. The PGCPS Academy of Health Sciences at PGCC includes 100 seats for health sciences students and 75 additional seats for the teacher preparation program, which prepares students to graduate with a high school diploma and an Associate of Arts in Teaching Degree.