ARLINGTON, Va. – June 10, 2021. Today, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards recognized school districts across the country that work to promote student learning through excellent teaching. The National Board Accomplished District program honors 79 districts in which at least 20% of its teachers have achieved National Board certification,* encouraging teachers to be their best and effectively driving student learning.
The 79 Accomplished Districts come from ten states including Alabama, California, Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Washington. The top four districts by percentage include the following:
- Nashville Community High School District (IL), 47.06%
- Bellevue School District (WA), 45.47%
- Piedmont City School District (AL), 44.68%
- Tukwila School District (WA), 42.45%
The National Board Accomplished District program was originally unveiled in 2019 and included 81 districts recognized for their high percentage of NBCTs. Compared to the 2019 list, six districts moved from the 20% category to the 30% category:
- Buncombe County (NC)
- Haywood County (NC)
- Lake Chelan #129 (WA)
- Manson #19 (WA)
- Pontotoc City (MS)
- Watauga County (NC)
“High quality teaching is the most important in-school factor impacting student learning. The diverse districts that meet the threshold to be included in the National Board Accomplished District program understand the value of quality teaching and support teachers to be their best. We encourage state and district leaders to support National Board certification because NBCTs have a measurable impact on student learning. Every student deserves the best possible teacher,” said Peggy Brookins, a National Board Certified Teacher and the president and CEO of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
Districts will be recognized with an award for the district office and unique celebrations for the NBCTs in those districts.
*Districts with at least 10 NBCTs were selected based on self-reported NBCT data and information gleaned from the National Center for Education Statistics.
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About the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (www.nbpts.org):
The founding mission of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards is to advance the quality of teaching and learning by: maintaining high and rigorous standards for what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do; providing a national voluntary system certifying teachers who meet these standards, and advocating related education reforms to integrate National Board Certification in American education and to capitalize on the expertise of National Board Certified Teachers. Recognized as the “gold standard” in teacher certification, the National Board believes higher standards for teachers means better learning for students