Congratulations to Illinois’ Class of 2017 National Board Certified Teachers (NBCT)!
Three hundred and thirty-seven new NBCTs join the over 6,000 Illinois NBCTs to rank Illinois as sixth in the nation in the number of National Board Certified Teachers. These teachers have invested a tremendous amount of time and energy into this professional journey and we celebrate their achievement. They are to be commended for all that they did to achieve this rigorous certification and for what they continue to do every day for their students and the teaching profession.
While state licensing systems set the basic requirements to teach in each state, National Board Certified Teachers have demonstrated advanced teaching knowledge, skills and practices. National Board Certification is achieved through a rigorous, performance-based assessment of a teacher’s pedagogical skills and content knowledge. The certification takes one to three years to complete. NBPTS certification identifies qualified teachers as leaders in their field, much like the certifications earned by experts in law and medicine. Completion of NBPTS’s National Board Certification process signifies that the certificated teachers have developed and demonstrated the skills required of a true education professional.
Governor Bruce Rauner said “As Governor of the State of Illinois, I am pleased to congratulate you on becoming a National Board Certified Teacher. I am certain that during your teaching career, you have touched the lives of countless students and their families, serving as both an example and a source of knowledge. I commend you for the positive impact that you make, not only in your classroom and school district, but in your community as well.”
