First-Come, First-Served, One-Time $4,000 Teacher Excellence Retention Incentive for two consecutive years for Illinois National Board Certified Teachers/Counselors at Low-Income/Hard-to-Staff Schools
PAYMENT UPDATE: Due to delays in processing, our office will send verification emails soon. If you haven't heard from us by July 15th, please email our office at NBResourceCenter@ilstu.edu
REMINDER: If you are eligible- it is not a guarantee of payment. The state funds are limited and will not cover all eligible NBCTs. Those who are eligible and approved and don't receive a payment for FY25 will be paid first in June of FY26, provided there is continued state funding for this incentive.
-Updated July 1st, 2025
The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) is showing its support for the positive impact that National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) make through improving teaching and student learning for Illinois’ most under-resourced students in "hard-to-staff schools." Please take a moment to contact your state representatives to thank them for their continued support in funding incentives for NBCTs.
"A "hard-to-staff school" means a public school in which no less than 30% of student enrollment is considered low-income as reported by the report card under Section 10-17a of this Code." - Illinois Administrative Code 105 ILCS 5/21B-70
The application must be completed ONLY if you are an eligible Illinois National Board Certified Teacher/Counselor from a "hard-to-staff" school. The one-time USD 4,000.00 per year retention incentive for two consecutive years shall be paid to each qualified educator on a first-come, first-served basis who meets ALL criteria per year below:
- Is currently employed as a full-time teacher or school counselor in an Illinois public school for the whole school year AND
- holds a National Board for Professional Teaching Standards designation on their Illinois Professional Educator License AND
- is a current National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) AND
- is employed in a "hard-to-staff school" as defined in Public Act 103-0207 for the whole school year
Please check the report below on or after February 1, 2025, for more information regarding the eligible schools for the 2024-2025 incentive cycle. There are a total of 2,945 eligible schools that employ educators who might by other factors above be determined to be eligible for the retention incentive. Please visit the NCES website, ISBE EBF Quick Facts, and Illinois Report Card for more information about your school, district, and other perspectives that you might find useful. The data from these sites are updated annually by ISBE. Please refer to the Illinois School Report Card business rules to determine why a school may not appear on the report card. If you have questions about the business rules, please get in touch with reportcard@isbe.net.
If you fail to meet any of the above mentioned criteria, you are not eligible to receive the $4K Retention Incentive. You can also look over this to get an idea of whether you may qualify for this incentive.
FY25 Annual Eligibility Report
Eligibility is not determined by the NBRC . The eligibility of the schools for the Teacher Excellence incentive is obtained from the Illinois Report Card created by the Illinois State Board of Education. The contents of the report are compiled and released annually by ISBE. Please double-check your school's eligibility using the list above.
2025 Eligible NBCT LIST
PAYMENT UPDATE: Due to delays in processing, our office will send verification emails soon. If you haven't heard from us by July 15th, please email our office at NBResourceCenter@ilstu.edu
REMINDER: If you are eligible- it is not a guarantee of payment. The state funds are limited and will not cover all eligible NBCTs. Those who are eligible and approved and don't receive a payment for FY25 will be paid first in June of FY26, provided there is continued state funding for this incentive.
-Updated July 1st, 2025
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NO TE: Funds are available on a first-come, first-served, one-time basis for two consecutive years for those NBCTs that are found eligible AND approved for payment. Continuation of this incentive is based on approved funding from ISBE each fiscal year. The available funding is a set amount (varies each year). There is no guarentee eligible applicants will be approved for payment each fiscal year for this incentive.
For assistance regarding technical or processing issues, please contact NBResourceCenter@illinoisstate.edu.
**NOTE: If you are not currently an NBCT but would like to learn more about the application process, please visit our Application for the Illinois National Board First Time Candidate Fee Subsidy page.
If you wish to be added to our email list, please send us an email at NBResourceCenter@ilstu.edu