State Teacher Policy Database Homepage › North Carolina › Policy Priority: Teacher Diversity

Data Systems

Learn more about how North Carolina is performing on Data Systems in the Teacher Diversity policy area.
Go to a policy lever Data Systems Financial Incentives Supports for Teachers of Color Teacher Pipeline Programs
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North Carolina's Performance

Ungraded
NCTQ evaluates whether states are effectively using a policy lever by examining whether they set explicit public goals, publish diversity data for both the workforce and preparation programs, as well as disaggregated licensure test pass rate data. Explore the key actions below to learn more about how North Carolina is implementing Data System policies.

Why does this matter?

Setting goals provides a long-term vision along with short-term motivation. States can demonstrate their commitment to diversifying the workforce by setting public goals and then tracking progress towards those goals. Currently, only a handful of states have numeric, public goals to diversify their workforce.

Why does North Carolina stand out?

North Carolina publishes explicit goals for increasing the racial/ethnic diversity of the teacher workforce. The state regularly publishes the racial and ethnic demographics of its educator workforce. It also publishes completion data disaggregated by race/ethnicity on their own website. 

North Carolina now sets interim progress measures and percentage goals at multiple points along the teacher pipeline. These include: the percentage of candidates of color admitted to the state’s educator preparation programs, the cohort completion rate for candidates of color, and the percentage of those who pass initial licensure exams on the first attempt. The state sets a goal of 95% retention for teachers of color in schools each year1 and publishes data on all of the goals listed above in a detailed public dashboard.

What are the key actions North Carolina should take?

    • See what these exemplars are doing in this policy area:

    Massachusetts
    Illinois

    Key Resources

    State of the States 2023: Teacher Diversity

    Explore NCTQ’s comprehensive scan of state teacher diversity policies.

    Explore resource

    Increasing teacher diversity: Four ways districts can take action

    Learn more about how districts can create the conditions for a more diverse workforce.

    Explore resource

    Teacher Prep Review: Program Diversity and Admissions

    Dive into NCTQ’s 2021 analysis of the diversity of educator preparation programs.

    Explore resource

    Driven by data: Using licensure tests to build a strong, diverse teacher workforce

    Discover the critical role that licensure tests play in strengthening and diversifying the teacher workforce.

    Explore resource
    References
    1. The Hunt Institute & Office of Governor Roy Cooper. (2021). Developing a representative & inclusive vision for education (DRIVE) final report and recommendations. Retrieved from https://files.nc.gov/governor/documents/files/HI-DRIVE-Final-Report.pdf
    2. Of note, other states do set goals around teacher diversity that may not be numeric, or are not published, and thus are not reflected here.