‘A tremendous accomplishment’: NC leads US in number of nationally certified teachers
North Carolina continues to lead the nation with the most educators receiving what’s called the “gold standard for teacher excellence.”
The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards recently released data showing that North Carolina leads the country with 23,858 teachers who’ve completed the group’s rigorous certification process.
Of the 2,814 teachers who received national certification for the first time in the 2021-22 school year, North Carolina had the most of any state at 486.
In addition, 1,414 North Carolina teachers renewed their certifications over the past year, the second most of any state.
“This credential is a tremendous accomplishment that demonstrates classroom and content mastery,” State Superintendent Catherine Truitt said in a news release this week. “I want to congratulate these teachers for pursuing career advancement that benefits not only their students, but teachers across the state in elevating the profession.”
NC pays more to certified teachers
North Carolina has historically led the U.S. in the number of nationally certified teachers, in part because it comes with a 12% annual pay boost from the state.
State officials point to research showing nationally certified teachers are more effective than educators who haven’t gone through the process. The state has kept the higher pay for national certification while dropping it in others areas such as when teachers earn master’s degrees.
It costs $1,900 in fees to get certified, and North Carolina provides low-interest loans to teachers to help them go through the process.
The Public School Forum of North Carolina wants state lawmakers to increase the diversity and number of nationally certified teachers by reimbursing the fees and providing support for teachers of color during the process.
North Carolina accounts for 18% of the 133,444 nationally certified teachers. In addition, 23% of North Carolina’s teachers are nationally certified, the most of any state.
District rankings
Before this year, school districts were ranked by their total number of nationally certified teachers. By that measure, Wake County had led the nation for 16 years in a row.
But starting this year, the National Board is now only ranking districts based on the number of new teachers receiving certification. Wake County is second on that list nationally with 85 newly certified teachers, behind only the much larger Los Angeles Unified School District.
In addition, Wake had 198 teachers who renewed their certification.
“We could not be more proud of the accomplishments of our newly certified and newly renewed NBCTs, or more grateful for all they do to support our students, families, and community,” Sherri Morris, Wake’s National Board coordinator, said in a news release.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools had the fourth-most newly certified teachers in the nation with 59 educators. In the past, it also had the fourth-most certified teachers of any district in the nation.
Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Orange County and Wake County are among a group of school districts that made the NBPTS list of nationally accomplished districts for having at least 20% of their teachers being certified.
North Carolina accounts for five of the top 10 alma maters for national board teachers: Appalachian State University at No. 1, East Carolina University at No. 2, UNC-Chapel Hill at No. 4, UNC-Greensboro at No. 6 and UNC-Charlotte at No. 8.
Go to www.nbpts.org/nbct-directory/ to view a directory of nationally certified teachers.
Go to www.ncpublicschools.org/nationalboardcertification/ for more information on how North Carolina teachers can get certified.
This story was originally published February 10, 2023 at 8:00 AM with the headline "‘A tremendous accomplishment’: NC leads US in number of nationally certified teachers."
