ATLANTA — Today is the final day to register for Breakthrough Atlanta, a tuition-free college prep and teaching fellowship program that supports metro Atlanta middle and high school students.

The nonprofit program offers year-round academic guidance to middle schoolers, continuing through high school with a focus on college readiness and success. At the same time, it provides college students pursuing education careers with hands-on classroom experience.

“We combine learning with fun, all with a goal of keeping our students on track to getting into and succeeding in college,” said Monique Shields, Executive Director of Breakthrough Atlanta.

For the 2025–2026 program year, Breakthrough Atlanta will select 500 middle and high school students and 60 college teaching fellows. Shields noted the program also helps address a growing teacher shortage across metro Atlanta. “Metro area districts were down by over 600 teachers at the start of the school year, so we’re helping to fill that need,” she said.

The program is made possible through donor support, which allows students to participate at no cost.

Applications must be submitted by midnight tonight, April 16, 2025, at breakthroughatlanta.org.

WSBs Ashley Simmons contributed this story