NEWS RELEASE: New Mexico Ranks Eleventh in Nation for Percentage of National Board Certified Teachers
For Immediate Release
Contact: Nate Williams
Public Information Officer
New Mexico Public Education Department
505-699-9791
nathan.williams@ped.nm.gov
January 23, 2024
New Mexico Ranks Eleventh in Nation for Percentage of National Board Certified Teachers
SANTA FE, N.M. - Data released from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards ranks New Mexico as eleventh in the nation for percentage of educators who are National Board certified, with 7.02% of NM educators holding a National Board Certification.
New Mexico also ranks thirteenth in the nation both for total number of new National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) and total number of NBCTs who renewed their certification in 2023.
Albuquerque Public Schools ranks fourteenth in the nation for school districts with the highest number of new NBCTs.
In December 2023, 70 teachers from New Mexico received their National Board Certification for the first time. An additional 124 teachers successfully renewed their National Board Certification in 2023, raising the total number of NBCTS in New Mexico to 1,513.
The National Board’s certification process includes a content knowledge assessment and multiple portfolio-based components. National Board Certification is acknowledged as the most respected professional certification available in education.
“We applaud our Board-certified teachers for their commitment to high standards,” said New Mexico Public Education Secretary Arsenio Romero. “The certification process requires teachers to reflect on their educational practices at a deep level, which is vital to a teacher’s growth and development. The National Board not only helps recognize educational excellence, it helps build it.”
Through funding appropriated annually by the New Mexico Legislature, the Public Education Department awards up to $500,000 in scholarships to help teachers pay for certification and recertification. New applicants are required to pay $1,900 to complete the certification process. Certification must be renewed every five years and includes a $495 fee.
New Mexico teachers may utilize National Board Certification to advance a single tier in the state’s three-tiered licensure system. With National Board Certification, level 2 teachers can advance to level 3 without obtaining a master’s degree. New Mexico NBCTs also receive a salary differential of 1.5 student units for each year they are certified.
“We need to continue to support pathways to certification like the scholarship program for teachers and the salary differential for teachers who achieve certification. I have seen Board-certified teachers in action in New Mexico classrooms. They go above and beyond the expectations of the teaching profession and are attentive, responsive, caring and compassionate educators,” said Evelyn Sanchez, President of the New Mexico NBCT Network.
Teachers who have a minimum of three years of classroom experience can apply to the National Board for one of 25 possible certifications across four developmental levels and 16 areas of study.
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The New Mexico Public Education Department partners with educators, communities and families to ensure that all students are healthy, secure in their identity and holistically prepared for college, career and life. Currently, NMPED serves about 320,000 students in 189 districts and charter schools. Find an abundance of resources for administrators, educators, families and students at New Mexico Public Education Department (state.nm.us) or follow the NMPED on Facebook and Instagram .
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