Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

North Carolina leads the nation with 23,090 teachers who hold national board certification, including 467 teachers who earned their certification in 2019-20, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards announced recently.

One teacher in the Beaufort County school district earned the certification in 2020; the district now has 98 nationally certified teachers.

“The certification process is based on high and rigorous standards that evaluate teaching practice through performance-based assessments,” an N.C. Department of Public Instruction press release reads. “The ultimate result is improved performance and achievement for North Carolina’s students”.

As part of the certification process, teachers build portfolios that include student work samples, assignments, videotapes and an analysis of their teaching.

Teachers in North Carolina who achieve national certification receive a 12% supplement to their pay. The state offers low interest loans to help certification-seeking teachers pay the $1,900 assessment fee, as well as three paid release days from their teaching duties to give them time to work on their portfolios.

Nearly 23% of teachers in North Carolina are nationally certified.

“It’s an incredible accomplishment to have such a large percentage of board-certified teachers in our state, and I extend sincere congratulations to all who have achieved this incredible feat,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt said. “North Carolina teachers demonstrate their dedication to students each day, and their commitment to attaining this certification shows how devoted they are to being their very best for students.”