Gadsden County School District is on a journey toward achieving excellence. Our students are the reason we exist, and everything we do must be focused on goals and resources that are in the students’ best interest. From this perspective, we will continue to be committed to collaborating with all stakeholders to better prepare our students for life in a global society.

DISTRICT'S MISSION AND VISION

VISION

Gadsden County Public Schools comprise a system of excellence that prepares ALL students to live and successfully compete in a global society.

MISSION

The mission of Gadsden County Public Schools is to collaborate with all stakeholders to provide a safe, caring, rigorous and engaging instructional environment in which students can learn and succeed.

CORE BELIEFS

The Gadsden County School District believes that:

·    all students will learn when instruction is engaging, rigorous, differentiated and individualized;

·    learning environments must be safe and supportive;

·    schools exist to foster the development and well-being of the whole child;

·    understanding and respecting diversity enriches students’ lives;

·    every student has a right to a high quality education;

·    success requires shared responsibility, collaboration and communication among all staff, families, students and the community;

·    engaged families combined with highly effective teachers and school leaders are the central components of a successful school;

·    positive character education is essential to whole child development;

·    high-quality customer service is a critical component of high-quality education;

·    everyone must be held to the highest ethical standards to achieve excellence;

·    everyone must contribute to and be held accountable for student achievement; and

·    all district services must clearly be linked to student achievement.

SECONDARY CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION

Career and Technical Education can give high school students what they need to succeed in life: technical skills, academic skills, and employability skills (https://www.skillsusa.org). A successful transition from school to work requires that the education our students receive is relevant to the job market, in sync with global economic forecasts, and contribute to our economy (Psychology Today: The Importance and Relevance of CTE, Dr. Jamillah Moore, March 2015).

According to the Association for Career & Technical Education website (https://www.acteonline.org), when Career and Technical Education (CTE) is rigorous and relevant, youth and adults are prepared for a wide range of high-wage, high-skill, and high-demand careers. High school students involved in CTE are more engaged, perform better and graduate at higher rates.

·        81 percent of dropouts say relevant, real-world learning opportunities would have kept them in high school.

·        The average high school graduation rate for students concentrating in CTE programs is 90.18 percent, compared to an average national freshman graduation rate of 74.9 percent.

·        More than 70 percent of secondary CTE concentrators pursued postsecondary education shortly after high school.

Secondary CTE Programs

POSTSECONDARY CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION

Gadsden Technical College (GTC) is the district’s postsecondary Adult Career and Technical institution.  It is a small site located at 201 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.  GTC offers adult education classes for students hoping to earn their GED and several adult Career and Technical programs:

·        Automotive Service Technology

·        Automotive Service Technology 1

·        Barbering

·        Carpentry

·        Commercial Class “B” Driving

·        Cosmetology

·        Diesel Systems Technician 2

·        Facials Specialty

·        Nails Specialty

·        Pharmacy Technician

·        Power Equipment Technologies

·        Practical Nursing

For more information call 850-875-8324 or visit www.gadsdentech.org .