ATLANTA -- The Georgia Department of Education has revealed the 10 finalists for 2014 Georgia Teacher of the Year.

Several of the finalists are from metro Atlanta. The top teachers were chosen from 155 educators across the state.

"I congratulate our ten Georgia Teacher of the Year finalists and those who applied," State Superintendent Dr. John Barge said in a statement. "As usual, we had a very impressive group of teachers make the top ten."

The 2014 Georgia Teacher of the Year will be revealed at a banquet on May 3. That teacher will succeed 2013 Georgia Teacher of the Year Lauren Eckman, who works at the Georgia Academy for the Blind in Macon.

The 10 finalists are:

Tamika N. Ball
Teaches math at D.M. Therrell School of Health Sciences and Research
Atlanta Public Schools

Jemelleh Coes
Teaches English language arts and reading at Langston Chapel Middle School
Bulloch County School System

ATLANTA --The Georgia Senate has approved changes to a tax credit program that provides scholarships for children to attend private schools.

State senators voted unanimously Thursday to support the changes, which include a reporting requirement on the average household income of recipients and requires eligible students to have attended public school for at least six weeks with a few exceptions.

Under the system, people can receive state tax credits by giving nonprofit scholarship providers donations of up to $1,000 for individuals and up to $2,500 for married couples.

The Southern Education Foundation had raised concerns that donors may have been allowed to earmark donations, although supporters had argued that was prohibited under the law. The Senate bill would add language specifically prohibiting that.