Teacher-retention figures are bleak locally and nationally, but Brenau University's Augusta Campus hopes to do its part to add to the teacher pool.

The small private campus on Davis Road has added office space, staff and two education degrees for the fall semester, said Donny Moore, the site director.

"We've got young ones leaving. We've got old ones retiring," he said of the need to train more educators.

Brenau decided to offer the degrees after noticing that a need in the community wasn't being met, he said. Calls have already started coming in for the Bachelor of Science degrees in early childhood education and middle-grades education.

"I won't say overwhelming, but a very encouraging response," he said. "We've got a whole stack of applications already backed up for us now."

Unlike traditional colleges, Brenau offers mostly night classes and some weekend classes, Mr. Moore said.

"We really didn't see an opportunity for people like parapros, teachers' assistants, teaching assistants and people like that who are having to work in the daytime and couldn't get to the day classes at any of the programs that were being offered," he said, calling Brenau's programs more "flexible."

With the growth of Columbia County and the widening of Davis Road, the college is in a prime location to grow, Mr. Moore said. Brenau is already considering adding new buildings.

The education degrees offered by the private school are just as valid as those offered by state schools, he said. And, as with public institutions, Brenau accepts financial aid and HOPE scholarships.

Earlier this month, the National Education Association released information on the high turnover of teachers.

Nearly half of new teachers leave the profession within five years of walking into the classroom, the figures show. That, combined with retirement and expected higher enrollments, will create a need for more than 3.9 million teachers by 2014.

Reach Greg Gelpi at (706) 828-3851 or greg.gelpi@augustachronicle.com.