08-04-2025
North Carolina Teaching Fellows Commission sees record numbers
(WGHP) — More qualified educators are on their way to schools in North Carolina.
The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Commission hit a record number of teaching fellows for the upcoming school year.
North Carolina has struggled with high turnover rates for teachers in the past. From 2023 to 2024, almost one in 10 teachers left their job, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
To combat this issue, programs like North Carolina Teaching Fellows have stepped up, and this year, they had the highest number of 530 teaching fellows.
Dr. Tosha Rooks has been an educator in Guilford County Schools for more than 20 years. From a test facilitator to an assistant principal, she has educated students from various perspectives and understands how important the job of a teacher is.
'We want the school year to start off and sustain with teachers who are supported and that are really there for the children that can help them expand both academically and socially. It is really important for the state of North Carolina.' Rooks said.
That is why she now serves as the director for programs like the North Carolina Teaching Fellow for NC A&T State University. The NC Teaching Fellows Program is a forgivable merit-based program providing tuition assistance of up to $10,000 a year. Among the 10 schools participating, Rooks says NC A&T State University brings in a unique angle.
'One thing is that I really tried to bring in global thinking … We started off as STEM. When they brought the program back, it was basically STEM. Now, they have included elementary education,' Rooks said.
Rooks says that with many teaching fellows coming from small towns without a lot of experience in long-distance traveling, she tries to broaden her students' horizons by taking them to international conferences and retreats.
Bennett Jones, the director of the NC Teaching Fellows Program, says it is important to retain the public instructors as much as recruiting them.
'Get them into our educator prep programs, ensure a robust and a meaningful experience while they are in school and how do we help support them and coach and mentor them that when they go back to the classrooms they stay,' Jones said.
Through the NC Teaching Fellows Program, the repayment is through teaching one year for every year you receive funding.
NC A&T State University will be hosting a beginning teacher conference on Saturday.
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