National Board for Professional Teaching Standards

Eligibility

NBCTs must meet the eligibility requirements (Wisconsin Administrative Code PI 37.03(1)) to qualify for reimbursement:

• Certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
• Licensed as a teacher by the state superintendent or employed as a teacher in a private school or tribal school located in this state.
• Employed as a teacher in a public, private, or tribal school in Wisconsin. Teachers must be delivering direct instruction to pupils in the area in which they are nationally certified. School psychologists, school counselors, or school social workers are also eligible. Applicants must be working for a minimum of 40 percent full-time equivalency in a school year, as defined in Wis. Admin. Code Ch. PI 37.02. When an applicant is reported in WISEstaff as a Program Coordinator, Academic Support, or Teacher Mentor, etc., they must also be employed and reported as a teacher delivering instruction to pupils in the area in which they are nationally certified for at least 40% FTE to be eligible for the grant.
• Have a rating of effective or highly effective in the applicable Educator Effectiveness System if employed as a teacher in a public school.
• Not have received a concurrent grant under Wisconsin Administrative Code PI 37 in the same school year.

NBCTs certified in another state and employed as a teacher in Wisconsin may apply for initial reimbursement. The application for reimbursement must be submitted before submitting the application for annual grants. Out-of-state candidates apply for initial reimbursement using the application and must upload a copy of the NBPTS certificate or score report letter with the application materials.

After receiving notification from NBPTS in late December, DPI will email first-time Wisconsin National Board certified teachers regarding their eligibility for initial reimbursement.

About the Initial Reimbursement Application

The initial reimbursement application is administered online. Before beginning the application, ensure all receipts substantiating expenses to be listed on the application are in an electronic format (JPEG, PDF, Microsoft Word, etc.). Receipts are required to be uploaded in the application process. Receipts must include the applicant's name, date of expense, verification that the applicant incurred the expense, the amount, and the payee.

If applying for mileage reimbursement, list as an expense within the online application and attach a document outlining the date(s) of travel, addresses traveled to and from, and total number of miles of each trip. The current mileage reimbursement rate is $0.51 per mile.

Application Cycle

The application cycle is closed. The 2025-26 initial reimbursement/annual grant application will be posted in the fall.

Completed applications are due annually by June 30. To be considered ‘complete,’ the applicant and employer sections must be fully completed and the necessary receipts substantiating expenses outlined for reimbursement must be included.

Online application steps for applicant:

• Applicant enters name and email address.
• Applicant enters name and email of appropriate person within school/district to complete the employer verification form.
• Applicant clicks "Begin signing." After which, the applicant will be emailed a unique code to the previously entered email address. Applicant must use this code to access the application.
• Applicant completes the subsequent sections of the application: general information, expense reimbursement details, and eligibility criteria certification.
• Applicant completes the state and federal tax forms. (These forms will automatically appear within the application.)
• Applicant uploads receipts substantiating expenses listed in the application.
• Applicant completes the signature and date section.
• Applicant clicks "finish."

At this point, the employer verification form is sent to the contact's email address identified by the applicant at the beginning of the application process. The applicant will receive an automated email that the form has been sent to the employer. THIS IS NOT CONFIRMATION THE APPLICATION IS COMPLETE.

Online application steps for employer:

• Employer indicates whether the educator is employed in the area for which they are nationally certified.
• Employer enters school(s) in which applicant is employed and percentage of employment as a teacher (FTE).
• Employer indicates if applicant is working under contract as an administrator, and, if yes, percentage of employment/FTE.
• Employer enters school year.
• Employer indicates if the teacher has been rated as effective, highly effective or is in process of being evaluated using the Educator Effectiveness System.
• Employer completes verification by entering name of school district, school district address, their name, signature, date, title, email and phone number.
• Employer clicks "finish."

DPI Review of Initial Reimbursement

After the employer verification has been completed, the application is then sent to DPI for review. Once DPI’s review is complete, all parties (applicant, employer, and DPI) will receive an automated email indicating the application has been completed. This email does not mean the application has been approved. The notification email contains a link to the fully executed application. Applicants may use that link to check the approval status of the application, which is indicated at the bottom of the first page.

• If the application is approved, please allow 6-8 weeks for payment processing. Payment will be in the form of a paper check mailed to the applicant’s home address.
• If the application is disapproved, the reason for denial will be indicated at the bottom of the first page of the fully executed application available from the link in the notification email.

Eligibility

To qualify for the annual grant, the NBCTs must:

• Have received an NBPTS initial reimbursement grant.
• Maintain their NBPTS certificate.
• Maintain their license as a teacher issued by the state superintendent or remain employed in a private school or tribal school located in this state.
• Be employed as a teacher in a public or private school in Wisconsin. Teachers must be delivering direct instruction to pupils in the area for which they are nationally certified. School psychologists, school counselors, or school social workers are also eligible. Applicants must be working for a minimum of 40 percent full-time equivalency in a school year as defined in Wis. Admin. Code Ch. PI 37.02. If an applicant is reported in WISEstaff as a Program Coordinator, Academic Support, or Teacher Mentor, etc., they must also be employed and reported as a teacher delivering instruction to pupils for at least 40% FTE in order to be eligible for the grant.
• Have a rating of effective or highly effective in the applicable Educator Effective System if employed as a teacher in a public school.
• Not be receiving a concurrent grant under Wisconsin Administrative Code PI 37 in the same school year.

Grant Award

Annual grants are awarded in the amount of $2,500 in each of the nine subsequent school years. NBCTs who are employed as a teacher in a high-poverty school (Glossary: At least 60% of the pupils enrolled satisfy the income eligibility criteria for a reduced lunch under 42 USC 1758(b)(1)) are eligible for a $5,000 annual grant.

High Poverty Schools Identified for NBPTS Grants (The 2024-25 list will be used for 2025-26 grant applications.)

Pursuant to Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapter PI 37.03 (1) (c), applicants applying for the Annual NBPTS Grant are eligible for payment in the amount of $5,000 if employed as a teacher in a school in which at least 60% of the pupils enrolled satisfy the income eligibility criteria for a free or reduced-price lunch under 42 USC 1758 (b) (1). To ensure the most accurate information available, the below lists are based on certified income eligibility criteria for a free or reduced-price lunch from the prior year. The lists of public and private high-poverty schools for the NBPTS Annual Grant are:

2024-25

Public Schools
Private Schools

Application Cycle

The application cycle is closed. The 2025-26 annual grant application will be posted in the fall.

Completed applications are due annually by June 30. To be considered ‘complete,’ the applicant and employer sections must be fully completed and the necessary receipts substantiating expenses outlined for reimbursement must be included.

NBPTS Annual Grant online application steps for applicant:

• Applicant enters name and email address.
• Applicant enters name and email address of the appropriate person within their school/district to complete the employer verification form.
• Applicant clicks "Begin Signing." After which, the applicant will be emailed a unique code to their previously entered email address. Applicant must use this code to access the application.
• Applicant completes the subsequent sections of the application: general information, expense reimbursement details, and eligibility criteria certification.
• Applicant clicks "finish."

At this point, the employer verification form is sent to the person the applicant identified at the beginning of the application process. The applicant will receive an automated email that the form has been sent to the employer. THIS IS NOT CONFIRMATION THAT THE APPLICATION IS COMPLETE.

Online application steps for employer:

• Employer indicates if the educator is employed in the area in which they are nationally certified.
• Employer enters school(s) in which applicant is employed and percentage of employment as a teacher (FTE).
• Employer indicates if applicant is working under contract as an administrator, and, if yes, percentage of employment/FTE.
• Employer enters school year.
• Employer indicates if the teacher has been rated as effective, highly effective or is in process of being evaluated in the Educator Effectiveness System.
• Employer completes verification by entering name of school district, school district address, their name, signature, date, title, email and phone number.
• Employer clicks "finish."

DPI Review

The application is then sent to DPI for review. Once DPI’s review is complete, all parties (applicant, employer, DPI) will receive an automated email indicating application has been completed. This email does not mean the application has been approved. To determine if the application was approved or disapproved, applicants must click on the document within the email and reference the bottom of first page of the application.

If the application is approved, please allow 6-8 weeks for payment processing. Payment will be in the form of a paper check mailed to the applicant’s home address.

If the application is disapproved, the reason for denial will be included.