GACTE Strategic Plan, 2025-2028
Vision
Georgia Association for Colleges of Teacher Education (GACTE) is the leading voice in Georgia on educator preparation.
Mission
GACTE provides leadership on issues related to professional education, promotes effective public policy, and enhances and improves professional education programs at member institutions.
Our Core Values
GACTE and its members hold central key values that undergird their work.
Serving All Learners
Preparation programs are committed to preparing education professionals who have a deep belief that every child can learn and should be given equitable access to effective educators. GACTE members are committed to increasing access to educator preparation to ensure that candidates more accurately reflect all PK-12 students.
High-Quality Learning
GACTE members are committed to providing high-quality learning environments both on their campuses and in PK-12 classrooms, where candidates practice what they learn frequently and under the supervision of faculty and PK-12 education professionals.
Access and Opportunities
GACTE and its members prepare candidates who are ready to be not only successful education professionals but also members of the larger professional community. Candidates graduate from their programs with a clear understanding of the ethical responsibilities of being an education professional and the opportunities for contributing to the larger good of their districts and states.
Scholarship and Knowledge Production
GACTE members are committed to high research standards and to producing scholarship that contributes to educational practice.
Accountability
GACTE members hold themselves to high standards and embrace accountability measures that demonstrate programs’ effectiveness and contribute to program improvement.
Infusing Current Knowledge and Practices into Programs
GACTE members are committed to preparing education professionals who understand how children learn and can utilize high-impact instructional strategies in their classrooms – such as leveraging technology, analyzing student data, etc.
Advocacy
GACTE advocates for educational policy and practice at the state level and promotes and supports PK-12 students and education professionals’ engagement in advocacy for educational policy and practice endeavors to expand the influence its members have on educational policy and practice.
Professional Development
GACTE is committed to supporting the leadership development of its members.
Collaboration with PK-12 Education Stakeholders
GACTE values partnerships with stakeholders such as professional organizations, agencies, businesses, and non-profit groups that promote the effective preparation of PK-12 education professionals.
Strategic Initiatives
GACTE’s work is focused on the following coordinated activities to help achieve our mission and vision.
Organizational Effectiveness
Goal 1: Establish GACTE as a recognized voice of Educator Preparation in Georgia through efforts to expand the organization’s footprint.
Action Item 1: Enhance GACTE’s value to current and potential members.
- 1.1. – Develop a membership value statement and communicate that statement to our members.
- 1.2 – Survey members to increase our understanding
Action Item 2: Elevate and promote the work of GACTE to increase the organization’s visibility.
- 2.1. – Redesign the GACTE website to make it more accessible and appealing.
- 2.2. – Share and celebrate the work completed by GACTE through a quarterly newsletter.
- 2.3. – Create a webinar series to highlight the exceptional work being done by GACTE members and their partners.
Action Item 3: Engage in strategic outreach to existing partners.
Engage in strategic outreach to existing partners, such as the University System of Georgia (USG), Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE), Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC), Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE), Georgia Association of Educators (GAE), Georgia Partnerships for Excellence in Education (GPEE), and Regional Education Service Agencies (RESAs) to explore potential collaborations.
- 3.1 – Create a list of our existing partners and share on the GACTE website.
- 3.2. – Survey our members to increase our understanding.
Action Item 4: Intentionally target new strategic partnerships.
- 4.1. – Use survey data from Action Items 1 and 3 to prioritize new strategic partnerships.
- 4.2. – Intentionally target one new strategic partnership per year.
Education as a Profession
Goal 1: Enhance efforts to support an increased educator and leader pipeline across Georgia.
Action Item 1: Engage with and provide support.
Engage with and provide support to the Georgia Department of Education, Georgia Professional Standards Commission, and other partners on efforts to increase the educator and leader pipelines across the state (i.e., Teach in the Peach campaign).
- 1.1. – Meet with state level FACS, Culinary and Education Program Specialists to explore opportunities to partner with Education as a Profession/CTAE pathway programs.
- 1.2. – Explore opportunities to engage in efforts to support an increased educator and leader pipeline in the state.
Action Item 2: Elevate and promote the work of education professionals (i.e., mentor teacher award).
- 2.1. – Continue fundraising efforts to support GACTE awards.
- 2.2. – Highlight award winners in the quarterly newsletter and the GACTE website.
Action Item 3: Showcase and celebrate the expertise of the GACTE membership.
- 3.1. – Highlight the expertise of GACTE members through the webinar series.
Advocacy
Goal 1: Engage in intentional advocacy for issues and topics that align with GACTE’s mission and vision.
Action Item 1: Ensure we have an active GACTE board-level Policy and Advocacy Committee to lead and support GACTE’s advocacy efforts.
- 1.1. – Committee will develop the committee charge and priorities related to policy, advocacy, and legislative work.
- 1.2. – Identify GACTE legislative priorities.
- 1.3. – Provide resources (e.g., recruitment, preparation, and retention) to (e.g., State/local decision-making partners local communities, USG, legislators, college presidents, provosts, local mayors, GACTE members, partners, etc.) promote understanding of, and voice for, the complexity of educator preparation.
Action Item 2: Increase awareness of GACTE members’ understanding of policies that impact educator preparation.
- 2.1. – Provide legislative updates and share advocacy efforts in the newsletter, on the website, and at the annual conference.
- 2.2. – Revitalize partnerships with PAGE, Georgia Association of Educational Leaders (GAEL) to ensure parity in planning.
- 2.3. – Actively engage in legislative advocacy efforts to promote GACTE priorities (i.e., Day on the Hill, Washington Week).