Mineola ISD was one of 36 districts or teacher preparation programs across the state awarded funding through the 2019-2021 Grow Your Own grant program, Cycle 2. Mineola will receive $11,500 to enhance its CTE Educational pathway, which encourages high school students to consider teaching as a career.

“Research shows that 60 percent of educators in the United States teach within 20 miles of where they went to high school,” said Commissioner Morath. “Because we know our future teachers are currently in our high schools, the goal of Grow Your Own is to help increase the quality and diversity of our teaching force and to better support our paraprofessionals, teacher’s aides and educators, especially in small and rural school districts.”

Mineola ISD currently has 21 students involved in the Education and Training pathway, but expects that number to grow in future years. Six of the students qualified recently for State at the recent Texas Association of Future Educations (TAFE) regional competition.

“I am excited for the opportunities our students will have in this CTE pathway. They will get valuable experience working with students in the classroom and be given an opportunity to become certified as an educational aide,” stated Mineola teacher Patty Hawkins.