Bulloch County Teacher Elizabeth Hartley earns national, state honors
National health science education ambassador; Finalist for GA’s Career Technical New Teacher of the Year
Elizabeth Hartley, a health science teacher with Bulloch County Schools, has been named as a national ambassador for health science education, plus a finalist for Georgia’s top new teacher in career technical education.
The National Consortium for Health Science Education selected Hartley to join its 12-member team of health science teachers tasked with advancing career and technical education and supporting professional development for health science educators nationwide. She is one of only three Georgians on the team, which includes Callie Davis of Cherokee County and Melissa Culpepper of Colquitt County.
“These are some of the best and brightest in the state, and I have the pleasure of working with them,” said Rachel Pophman, president of Georgia’s Healthcare Science Technology Educators Association (HSTEA), in an email announcing Hartley’s selection. “This is a huge accomplishment, and I am proud to lead our state organization with members that have such a drive for excellence in all that they do.”
As an ambassador, Hartley will co-host national webinars, assist with major events like the Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) International Leadership Conference, and help strengthen national engagement within the health science career education community.
In addition to this honor, in January, Hartley was named the New Allied Health Teacher of the Year by HSTEA at its Winter Conference in Savannah. That honor qualified her to compete for the Georgia Association for Career & Technical Education’s (GACTE) New Teacher of the Year award, which will be presented June 16–18 at the GACTE Conference in Athens. Hartley, as a nominee from the Healthcare Science division of GACTAE, will compete against new teacher nominees from its 11 other division winners.
Hartley just completed her third year as Bulloch County’s Therapeutic Allied Health & Medicine career pathway instructor, which is housed at Southeast Bulloch High School in Brooklet. Drawing from her own experiences, she knows firsthand how career technical education can prepare high school students for entry into the medical field. Open to students from all three of the school district’s high schools, the pathway serves more than 130 students annually and includes three rigorous levels: Introduction to Healthcare, Essentials of Healthcare (which satisfies science credit requirements), and Allied Health, which features clinical rotations twice weekly in over 35 local hospitals and medical offices, including East Georgia Regional Medical Center (EGRMC) in Statesboro.
The career pathway is a successful local pipeline for future healthcare professionals. In 2025 Hartley ensured the pathway continued its commitment to excellence by successfully earning renewal of its national Industry Certification status for a fourth time, a standard set by the program’s initial instructor, Sharon Pye. National Industry Certification is a distinction that serves as the gold standard for career and technical education programs.
Beyond her teaching role, Hartley is also a registered nurse, a certified emergency nurse, and a trauma-certified registered nurse at EGRMC. Her collaboration with the hospital led to clinical experiences being added to her program for qualified students—an innovation that further enriches her program’s real-world relevance and provides students with valuable career readiness skills.
Hartley's students achieved a 93% pass rate on the national healthcare pathway exam last year and 89% this year, significantly exceeding Georgia’s 60% average. Hartley also leads the school’s Health Occupations Student Association (HOSA) chapter, whose student members have earned recognition at both state and national levels of competition.
Hartley began her own health sciences journey by earning an associate’s degree in Nursing from Aiken Technical College in 2019, where she was the salutatorian of her nursing program. A year later, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Nursing (BSN) from Georgia Southern University.
The GACTE New Teacher of the Year award recognizes outstanding educators like Hartley who are in their first five years of service, and who have demonstrated excellence in classroom instruction, student achievement, and leadership within the career technical education (CTE) community.
The National Consortium for Health Science Education selected Hartley to join its 12-member team of health science teachers tasked with advancing career and technical education and supporting professional development for health science educators nationwide. She is one of only three Georgians on the team, which includes Callie Davis of Cherokee County and Melissa Culpepper of Colquitt County.
“These are some of the best and brightest in the state, and I have the pleasure of working with them,” said Rachel Pophman, president of Georgia’s Healthcare Science Technology Educators Association (HSTEA), in an email announcing Hartley’s selection. “This is a huge accomplishment, and I am proud to lead our state organization with members that have such a drive for excellence in all that they do.”
As an ambassador, Hartley will co-host national webinars, assist with major events like the Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) International Leadership Conference, and help strengthen national engagement within the health science career education community.
In addition to this honor, in January, Hartley was named the New Allied Health Teacher of the Year by HSTEA at its Winter Conference in Savannah. That honor qualified her to compete for the Georgia Association for Career & Technical Education’s (GACTE) New Teacher of the Year award, which will be presented June 16–18 at the GACTE Conference in Athens. Hartley, as a nominee from the Healthcare Science division of GACTAE, will compete against new teacher nominees from its 11 other division winners.
Hartley just completed her third year as Bulloch County’s Therapeutic Allied Health & Medicine career pathway instructor, which is housed at Southeast Bulloch High School in Brooklet. Drawing from her own experiences, she knows firsthand how career technical education can prepare high school students for entry into the medical field. Open to students from all three of the school district’s high schools, the pathway serves more than 130 students annually and includes three rigorous levels: Introduction to Healthcare, Essentials of Healthcare (which satisfies science credit requirements), and Allied Health, which features clinical rotations twice weekly in over 35 local hospitals and medical offices, including East Georgia Regional Medical Center (EGRMC) in Statesboro.
The career pathway is a successful local pipeline for future healthcare professionals. In 2025 Hartley ensured the pathway continued its commitment to excellence by successfully earning renewal of its national Industry Certification status for a fourth time, a standard set by the program’s initial instructor, Sharon Pye. National Industry Certification is a distinction that serves as the gold standard for career and technical education programs.
Beyond her teaching role, Hartley is also a registered nurse, a certified emergency nurse, and a trauma-certified registered nurse at EGRMC. Her collaboration with the hospital led to clinical experiences being added to her program for qualified students—an innovation that further enriches her program’s real-world relevance and provides students with valuable career readiness skills.
Hartley's students achieved a 93% pass rate on the national healthcare pathway exam last year and 89% this year, significantly exceeding Georgia’s 60% average. Hartley also leads the school’s Health Occupations Student Association (HOSA) chapter, whose student members have earned recognition at both state and national levels of competition.
Hartley began her own health sciences journey by earning an associate’s degree in Nursing from Aiken Technical College in 2019, where she was the salutatorian of her nursing program. A year later, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Nursing (BSN) from Georgia Southern University.
The GACTE New Teacher of the Year award recognizes outstanding educators like Hartley who are in their first five years of service, and who have demonstrated excellence in classroom instruction, student achievement, and leadership within the career technical education (CTE) community.