National Institute for Excellence in Teaching Releases Report Celebrating 25 Years of Impact

PHOENIX (January 14, 2025) – The National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) is proud to celebrate its 25ᵗʰ anniversary by releasing its Building Educator Excellence: 25 Years of Impact report. This milestone report showcases the remarkable results achieved by NIET’s partners across the nation and underscores the transformative impact of investing in teachers and the leadership that supports them.

This report shares highlights from 25 years of NIET’s commitment to generating excellence in the classroom through four sections: Building Educator Excellence, Achieving Results, Improving Instruction, and Advancing the Profession. Each section holds key features from different states, including In Conversation segments with educators, principals, and state leaders, as well as stories of success. Hear from partner organizations, district, and state leaders, university deans working with NIET through grants and initiatives, NIET Founder and Chairman Lowell Milken, and NIET CEO Dr. Joshua Barnett in the anniversary report documenting the organization’s impact since it was founded.

"My goal was to put in place on the ground a system to achieve meaningful and sustained improvements in teacher practices and student learning. A key component of our success has been the focus on teacher leadership,” Milken said about the establishment of NIET. “Teacher leaders are too often an untapped resource for improving our nation’s schools, yet we have seen again and again that the establishment of formal teacher leader roles elevates the profession and attracts effective educators to our schools."

Since its founding, NIET has partnered with schools, districts, states, and universities to deliver a precise focus on educator support and student outcomes, elevating teaching leadership as a driver to accelerate teacher effectiveness. These partnerships, spanning from Arizona to Louisiana to South Carolina, have strengthened educator quality for over 350,000 teachers, impacting millions of students in more than 11,000 schools across 27 states.

Highlights of NIET’s 25-year impact include:

• Training and supporting more than 35,000 teacher leaders who have transformed the teaching profession and built sustainable systems for educator development.
• Helping districts and states implement strategies to attract, develop, and retain high-quality teachers, even in high-need areas.
• Supporting underperforming schools in becoming high-achieving campuses that consistently outperform their peers.

These efforts are grounded in a shared belief: Intentional, sustained investments in teachers and leadership create the foundation for lasting student success. This proven approach has led to significant student achievement gains, strengthened local communities, and created opportunities for students of all backgrounds and circumstances.

“For a quarter century, our partners have celebrated remarkable results that highlight the impact of our work,” said Barnett. “At NIET, we believe that teachers are the most powerful lever for change. It is imperative to ensure that every student, in every school, has access to an excellent teacher every day. Great work and student achievement gains should be celebrated, and we are proud to recognize the progress and highlights of our partners through this report.”

Explore NIET’s 25ᵗʰ Anniversary Report and learn more about how our work is shaping the future of education here.

About NIET

For 25 years, the National Institute for Excellence in Teaching (NIET) has partnered with schools, districts, states, and universities to advance educator effectiveness and student success. NIET's innovative, proven practices are designed to build educator capacity, strengthen instructional leadership, and improve outcomes for all students.