Certification & Professional Development

Effective teachers and leaders are at the core of any high-performing education system; the research proves that teachers are the single most important influence on student achievement. Accordingly, any high-performing education system needs structures in place to make sure its teachers and leaders are ready for the job and have high-quality opportunities to continue their professional growth.

• Teacher Preparation. Are you wondering how to get started on a teaching career in Maine? Maine colleges and universities have a number of teacher preparation program options.
• Certification & Fingerprinting. The Maine Department of Education's Certification Office issues credentials to education technicians, teachers and administrators and works with the Maine State Police to fingerprint all school employees.
  • National Board Certification. Most PreK-12 teachers are eligible to apply for National Board Certification, which puts them among the ranks of the nation's most accomplished teachers.
• Educator Effectiveness. The Department of Education is taking a number of steps to cultivate a highly effective and continuously improving teaching corps.
• Professional Development. If Maine is to cultivate a corps of highly effective educators, the professionals who work in Maine's schools need access to high-quality opportunities to continue their professional growth.
• maine121.org. The technology integration experts at the Maine Department of Education offer regular professional development on topics ranging from classroom technology use to assessment to digital citizenship.
• Training Calendar. The Maine Department of Education offers a calendar of professional development events, both in-person and virtual.
• Educator Awards. The Maine DOE either directly manages these award programs that recognize individual educators or groups, or works with the program sponsor to identify and honor an award recipient.