Teachers have long had the saying that June, July and August are three good reasons to teach, but South Carolina instructors can soon add a fourth.

Jim Anthony, CEO and owner of the Cliffs Community, has donated approximately $25 million worth of resources for a Teacher Renewal Center, or TRC, in a mountain and lake region in Pickens.

The yet-to-be built retreat area will have a first-class hotel, first-class restaurant and fulfill State Superintendent Jim Rex’s quest for more teacher support.

“This gives us an opportunity to really elevate and reinvigorate the teaching profession in a way that hasn’t ever been done anywhere else in the country,“ said Mark Bounds, director of the Office of School Leadership for South Carolina State Department of Education.

While the economic downturn may postpone the slated 2010 center opening, Bounds said the center’s ideology has already taken shape.

“The TRC is more than just a center. It’s an idea so we can deliver some of the center activities at Youth Learning Institute (at Clemson) or at other venues across the state as we wait for the building to be completed,“ said Bounds.

He estimates that teachers will stay two-and-a-half to three days at the site, which will be open 40 weeks of the year.

On weekends, the center will be open for entire faculties to meet.

TRC will provide outdoor opportunities for hiking, biking and kayaking, as well as time for teachers to renew their spirits and connect.

“We lose about a third of our teaching profession, and a big reason they leave is a feeling of isolation and disconnectedness in the profession. So the Teacher Renewal Center will give them a chance to connect with themselves, and also with other educators from across the state,“ said Bounds.

There will also be classes for teachers to hone skills, help students and revive interest in their occupation.

“It’s going to give them an opportunity to go to a place that will help them remember why they became teachers in the first place,“ said Bounds.

This past summer, a pilot group of top teachers tried out an early TRC phase at Clemson University.

During one of the last days of the program, Rex and Bounds saw the fruits of their efforts.

“It was about 10 o’clock in the evening and all the teachers were around a campfire and somebody had a guitar and they were singing. They were talking about being educators and it was just exactly what we had hoped,“ said Bounds.

At another activity, teachers made a map of their educational career. When they shared their map with others, “there were tears of joy as they talked about why they became teachers and students they impacted,“ said Bounds.

Three more teacher groups made up of teachers-of-the-year winners and nominees will participate in pilot groups this summer.

Bounds said they are still determining the attendance style. Perhaps they’ll bring in teacher teams from one school or individuals from different schools statewide.

The teams could then likely return to the center for an alumni TRC weekend to reconnect.

And while teachers are away, a traveling teaching staff may fill in for their class.

“What we would do is provide a menu of choices for the teacher so that while they’re away, their students would be getting relevant and rigorous instruction,“ said Bounds.

But beyond renewal, the TRC is also a “thank you“ to teachers.

Bounds says that many of South Carolina’s 50,000 teachers get up every day and “give their heart and soul for the children.“ He fears though that many go unhonored and wants them to feel appreciated.

“In America, it’s so backwards that we pay athletes sometimes multi-millions, and we pay teachers peanuts when they are the ones responsible for helping us grow our children,“ said Bounds. “So if the Teacher Renewal Center gives us an opportunity to let teachers know how much we care about them, it’s going to serve a great purpose.“

“That sounds wonderful,” said Jenny Banks, a Montessori teacher at Gallman Elementary who has taught for nine years. “(Teaching is) very strenuous, and the Teacher Center will be wonderful.”