FSU Selected to Serve as a North Carolina Teaching Fellows Partner Institution

The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Commission has selected Fayetteville State University (FSU) to serve as a partner institution for the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program. The UNC System announced in a press statement released today that three universities were selected based on the criteria outlined in state law including: educator effectiveness, impact on student learning, passage rates for required licensure exams, and early, frequent, internship experiences for educator prep students, among other factors. In addition, the North Carolina General Assembly directed the commission to focus specifically on an institution's ability to foster and promote a diverse teaching workforce.

FSU Chancellor Darrell T. Allison excitedly stated, "This announcement is huge for FSU, the community, and collectively for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). As one of the first HBCUs in North Carolina to have this distinction, FSU is proud to continue serving as a hub for future K-12 leaders. Our partnership with the NC Teaching Fellows Program and the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Commission expands student and teacher opportunities."

The mission of the NC Teaching Fellows Program is to recruit, prepare and support students attending North Carolina's top education programs for preparation as highly effective STEM or special education teachers in the state's public schools. Fellows will receive up to $4,125 per semester in forgivable loans if they commit to teach in science, technology, engineering and math or a special education area. The program is specifically designed to attract high-quality teachers to underperforming schools by offering an accelerated loan forgiveness schedule for teaching fellows who agree to teach in a low-performing school in North Carolina.

Additional NC Teaching Fellows Programs includes the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, North Carolina State University, Elon University and Meredith College. Since 2018, approximately 300 fellows have participated in the program.

The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Commission is comprised of four deans from educator preparation programs, teachers, principals, a member from business and industry and a local school board member. The NC Teacher of the Year, NC Principal of the Year, NC Superintendent of the Year, chair of the State Education Assistance Authority (SEAA) Board of Directors and director of the NC Teaching Fellows Program all serve as ex-officio members of the commission. North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and University of North Carolina at Pembroke to serve as the two additional partner institutions announced today.

North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program highlights:

• The amount of the forgivable loan is up to $4,125 per semester.
• Teachers have up to 10 years to pay back the loan, either through cash repayment or loan forgiveness.
• To meet the loan forgiveness requirement, a teacher must serve one year in a low-performing school or two years in another public school for every year a loan was awarded.

For more information about the UNC System Announcement visit: UNC System (northcarolina.edu) and for more information about Fayetteville State University please visit: www.uncfsu.edu.