Cobb Innovation and Technology Academy
prepared to welcome students back to class
By Ryan Kolakowski
rkolakowski@mdjonline.com
The $14.5 million Cobb Innovation
and Technology Academy,
an addition to Osborne
High School, is set to welcome
students during the 2020-2021
school year, provided classes
return to school buildings in the
district amid the coronavirus
pandemic.
The Cobb School District
broke ground on the project at
113 Windy Hill Road in Marietta
shortly after it approved
110 FACTBOOK 2021
Aerial shot of Cobb County School District’s new Career, Innovation, and
Technology Academy building at Osborne High School. - Special-CCSD
the construction contract in
March 2019. It was scheduled
to welcome students in the fall
of 2020, but the district opted to
start classes for the entire school
system online-only due to the
spread of COVID-19.
The academy will function
much like the district’s magnet
programs, but will be “more
geared to preparing students for
a career tech pathway, according
to Nan Kiel, a school district
spokesperson.
“The students who attend will
be even more equipped to start
successful careers after high
school or further their training
at a technical school or college,”
Kiel said.
According to the district
website, students at CITA will
be able to earn industry career
certifications and fee dual credits
to put toward an associate
degree. They will also receive
on-the-job training for work
that will allow them “to earn as
much as three to five times the
minimum wage” after graduating
from high school.
The academy offers 15 career
pathways in the three categories
of emerging technologies,
maker industries and health
care and community services.
Students can study cyber security,
energy, surgical technology,
emergency medical response,
carpentry, masonry, plumbing,
automotive, electrical and more.
Cobb Schools Superintendent
Chris Ragsdale said all
classrooms in the district aim to
prepare students for their future
career or college experiences,
but the academy will focus on
training them for high-demand
jobs now and looking forward.
Kiel said the academy will
allow students from across the
district to sharpen their science,
technology, engineering
and math skills, as well as earn
industry-recognized certifications.
The building has a capacity
of 500 students, she said.
“CITA is a state-of-the-art
learning environment and a tuition
free academy for 9th-12th
graders, designed to prepare
students to lead tomorrow’s
workforce,” the district wrote on
its website.
Cobb Innovation and Technology
Academy students will
be full-time Osborne students,
Kiel said, and it is open to any
rising ninth grader in the county.
CITA students will participate
in extracurricular activities, like
athletics, at Osborne. There is no
charge for tuition, and the district
provides bus transportation
for all students in the county, just
as it does for magnet programs
at Wheeler, Campbell, South
Cobb, North Cobb, Pebblebrook
and Kennesaw Mountain.
An application to attend
CITA is available on the magnet
application website, and students
must submit applicant information,
educational history and a
personal statement. The application
does not call for grade point
average, test scores or behavioral
history. In 2019, the application
opened on Oct. 1 and closed on
Dec. 2. Students received their
admission decisions on Feb. 14,
2020, and had to turn in their
decisions on March 16.
For more information about
the CITA, families and students
can contact Director Tiffany
Barney at Tiffany.Barney@
cobbk12.org or Assistant Director
Tracy Guillory at Tracy.
Guillory@cobbk12.org.
Midway Covenant Christian School
Classical Covental Christian
4635 Dallas Hwy.
Powder Springs, GA 30127
(770) 590-1866
www.midwayschool.org
Enrollment for K-3-8th for the
2021/2022 School Year opens
February 1, 2021
/cobbk12.org
/www.midwayschool.org
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