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PINE BELT, Miss. (AP) — A Mississippi university is offering a new program to help people get into the teaching profession.

William Carey University is offering the program called the Mississippi Teacher Residency Program. It’s packed with support to get aspiring teachers, those who are not in education, their master’s degree in elementary and special education.

William Carey University Chair of Curriculum and Instruction, Katie Tonore explains who should apply, WDAM-TV reported.

“Anyone who has a degree, or had a late calling in life, or wants to change their profession,” Tonore said.

The Mississippi Department of Education awarded William Carey University a $1.9 million grant to recruit 10 candidates each year, for two years, with a bachelor’s degree who wants to teach kindergarten through 6 grade.

“We are looking for anyone who would like to give back to their community in Covington County, Forrest County, Hattiesburg, and Greenville Public School District. You can move here, but you will be required to do practicum and clinical experiences in the school,” Tonore said.

Tonore said this 33 hour master’s in education program will give candidates a K-6 license with a special education endorsement, and the grant is paying for it all.

“We are paying for textbooks, test prep materials, test prep the actual cost of assessments,” Tonore said.

William Carey’s Dean of Education, Dr. Teresa Poole, said this grant is a big step in creating the teachers the community needs.

“This allows us to serve our community by placing candidates in our community, by working with our mentors, working with the superintendents. We are not only recruiting but we are working on the retention of teachers, and that’s going to make a great deal of difference,” Poole said.

The deadline to apply is March 15. Applicants can go to the Mississippi Department of Education website, mdek12.org, type “Mississippi Teacher Residency” in the search bar. The first result will take you right to the application.