Georgia High School students may soon be able to choose “Heavy Equipment Operator” as a career path through the state’s CTAE Training Career Pathways program.

“The heavy equipment operations pathway ensures another opportunity available in Georgia schools for students to gain skills to help them succeed in the future,”  Georgia State School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “Our goal is that, when students graduate from a Georgia high school, they are prepared for their next step – whether that’s enrolling in a college or university, immediately entering the workforce, or enlisting in the military.”

The pathway is composed of three courses – Industry Fundamentals and Occupational Safety, Introduction to Heavy Equipment, and Operation of Heavy Equipment I.

“The heavy equipment operations career pathway is an example of a locally developed pathway where the GaDOE CTAE staff worked with local business and education leaders to create a pathway that meets the needs of local industry,” GaDOE CTAE Director Dr. Barbara Wall said. “Once a locally developed pathway is approved by the Georgia Department of Education, it may be implemented in other local school systems and communities.”