National Council of Teachers of English

What National Council of Teachers of English does

The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional membership organization founded in 1911 and headquartered in Champaign, Illinois, with a second office near the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., and distribution/correspondence hubs in St. Louis, University Park (IL), and Annapolis Junction (MD). It serves more than 25,000 members and subscribers worldwide, spanning PreK-12 classroom teachers, college and university faculty, preservice teachers, school and district administrators, librarians, and literacy researchers, as the preeminent professional home for English and language arts educators in the United States. The organization is led by Executive Director Emily Kirkpatrick, with rotating elected Vice Presidents (Garcia 2023, Price 2024, Cooks 2025) and President Carol Jago.

Name

National Council of Teachers of English

Legal name

National Council of Teachers of English

Website

https://ncte.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1911

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

NCTE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional membership association founded in 1911, serving more than 25,000 English and language arts educators with journals, an annual convention, lesson plans, awards, and intellectual freedom advocacy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Education Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392), Educational Services (611), Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAJACAL

Professional Certification & Training Content Publishing (Exam Prep, CE/CPD)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Professional & Legal Publishing (Standards, Compliance, Reference)

SECONDARYTHAHACAA

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies)

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Professional Conference Organizers (PCOs) & Meeting Planners

Keywords

• Professional association
• Membership organization
• English language arts
• Literacy education
• Teacher professional development

Headquarters

HQ city

Champaign

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Membership Dues: Annual membership dues from individual educators. Three tiers: Standard Membership at $59/year, Student Membership at $30/year, and Emeritus Membership at $30/year for retired members with 15+ years of membership.
2. Institutional Subscriptions: Library and staff institutional subscriptions to any one of 10 professional journals, available with IP Authentication access for institutional subscribers.
3. School Group Memberships: School Membership Program for groups of 10 or more educators joining together, receiving complimentary electronic journals in addition to electronic member magazine.
4. NCTE Publications and Books: Sale of NCTE-published books, journals, and teaching resources through the NCTE Store with a 20% member discount. Physical sticker seals for award-winning books also sold.
5. Advertising and Sponsorships: Marketing solutions for advertisers including exhibiting, advertising, sponsorships, membership lists, and convention registration lists, reaching a community of inspired educators who are leaders and decision makers at school and district levels.
6. Convention and Event Registration: Revenue from the annual NCTE Annual Convention (e.g., 2026 in Philadelphia) and special interest conferences including the Conference on College Composition and Communication Annual Convention, Literacies for All Summer Institute, Conference on English Leadership Convention, and Two-Year College English Association National Conference.
7. Member Insurance Programs: Access to insurance programs including professional liability, life, health, and auto plans through the Trust for Insuring Educators, generating referral/revenue through the partnership.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

NCTE is a 100+-year-old professional membership association serving English and language arts educators. It sells individual memberships (Standard $59, Student $30, Emeritus $30), institutional journal subscriptions, peer-reviewed journals and books, the annual convention, lesson plans, intellectual freedom advocacy resources, and literary awards. The organization generates revenue primarily through membership dues, subscriptions, publication sales, event registration, and advertising/sponsorships.

Product overview

NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) is a professional membership organization, not a unified software platform. Its portfolio consists of distinct, largely non-technical offerings: (1) NCTE Membership with Standard, Student, and Emeritus tiers providing core access; (2) NCTE Journals - 10 peer-reviewed professional journals plus a digital archive of 1,800+ issues; (3) ReadWriteThink - lesson plans and teaching resources; (4) NCTE Intellectual Freedom Center - censorship defense resources; (5) NCTE Books - teacher-written publications; (6) Standards documents including NCTE/IRA Standards and Assessment Standards; (7) Literary and educational awards including Orbis Pictus Award, Charlotte Huck Award, and George Orwell Award; (8) African American Read-In; (9) REALM contest for school publications; (10) Annual Convention; (11) SMS messaging for account verification; (12) Career Center; and (13) Insurance programs. Additionally, NCTE released a Working Framework for Responsible AI Use in Classrooms in 2026 to guide educators on integrating AI tools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NCTE Individual Membership Annual professional membership program for individual educators with Standard ($59/year), Student ($30/year), and Emeritus ($30/year) tiers providing access to journals, conventions, lesson plans, intellectual freedom resources, member discounts, and voting rights in NCTE elections for Standard members.
• NCTE Journals and Institutional Subscriptions Ten peer-reviewed professional journals covering English language arts research, trends, and teaching strategies, available through institutional subscriptions for libraries, schools, and universities with IP Authentication access.
• ReadWriteThink Lesson Plans Platform Peer-reviewed online resource offering classroom-tested standards-based lesson plans, teaching ideas, videos, and online tools for literacy educators working with all students across grade levels.
• NCTE Annual Convention Annual four-day professional development convention bringing together more than 8,000 English language arts educators for learning, networking, and collaboration. Members receive over 40% discount on registration.
• NCTE Intellectual Freedom Center Resources and advocacy support for educators facing challenges to texts, student writing, or teaching methods, including a book rationale database with more than 1,400 titles searchable by title, author, and grade level for defending challenged texts.
• NCTE Books and Publications Store NCTE-published books and teaching resources written by teachers for teachers, sold through the NCTE Store with a 20% member discount. Also includes physical award seal stickers for award-winning books.
• School Group Memberships Institutional group membership program for groups of 10 or more educators joining together under a school or district, receiving complimentary electronic journals. Purchase orders accepted, payable within 90 days of invoice.
• NCTE Career Center Job board and career opportunities platform for K-college English language arts professionals, connecting educators with employment opportunities across the country.
• Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children Annual literary award established in 1989 recognizing excellence in nonfiction writing for children. Includes winner, up to five Honor books, and up to eight Recommended books each year.
• Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction for Children Annual award recognizing outstanding fiction for children, part of NCTE's Children's Book and Poetry Awards program.
• NCTE/IRA Standards for the English Language Arts National standards for English language arts education designed to complement other national, state, and local standards, providing guidelines for ELA curriculum and instruction.
• Working Framework for Responsible AI Use in Classrooms and Schools Educational guidance framework for responsible AI integration in classrooms and schools, providing educators with recommendations on using AI as a starting point while ensuring students develop their own reasoning.
• African American Read-In Nation's first and oldest event dedicated to diversity in literature, established in 1990 to make literacy a significant part of Black History Month. Includes searchable event registration for schools and communities.

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 25,000 members and subscribers served
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Tyrolia InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 March 2026NCTE announced a partnership with Tyrolia Institute to support the development of teacher writing practice, providing professional development and resources for educators to strengthen writing instruction.
• Sora (OverDrive)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 January 2026NCTE and Sora launched a national webinar series exploring the future of reading instruction, leveraging digital reading platforms to support English language arts educators in adopting modern reading technologies and practices.
• National Humanities AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 December 2022NCTE and the National Humanities Alliance jointly announced the 2022 Jefferson Lecture essay contest winner and runners-up, promoting humanities education and writing excellence.
• Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 February 2022NCTE partnered with the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College and the University of Pittsburgh School of Education for the 'Celebrating Black Writers: Voices Calling for Activism and Social Justice' writing award for secondary and college students.
• National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 January 2021NCTE partnered with the National Coalition Against Censorship to advance intellectual freedom, supporting educators facing censorship challenges through resources including the Free Expression Educators Handbook and NCTE's book rationale database.
• Penguin Random HousecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 August 2020NCTE partnered with Penguin Random House for the Leadership and Action Series (2020) and subsequently for two $10,000 teacher grants (2019, 2024). The partnership was extended in 2025 for the Anne Frank Award for Teaching Memoir, expanding student writing opportunities through memoir instruction. Penguin Random House also served as NCTE's official literacy partner for a virtual event celebrating Tara Westover's 'Educated.'
• National Media Literacy AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 June 2020NCTE joined the National Media Literacy Alliance in June 2020, advancing media literacy education within English language arts instruction.
• Trust for Insuring EducatorsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerNCTE provides members access to a variety of insurance programs including professional liability, life, health, and auto plans through the Trust for Insuring Educators, offering discounted rates as a member benefit.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• International Literacy Association (ILA): The leading global professional organization for literacy educators across grade levels; directly comparable to NCTE in mission, membership model, journal publications (e.g., Reading Research Quarterly, The Reading Teacher), and conference programming.
• Modern Language Association (MLA): Scholarly and professional association for the humanities with a strong focus on English studies and language; comparable to NCTE in serving college-level English faculty, publishing flagship journals (e.g., PMLA), and advocacy on academic freedom.
• American Library Association (ALA): National membership association for librarians with deep overlap in intellectual freedom advocacy, Banned Books Week coordination, and policy engagement; comparable to NCTE as a peer 501(c)(3) professional body defending contested reading materials.
• National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS): Subject-specific professional association for social studies educators with analogous membership tiers, peer-reviewed journals (e.g., Social Education), and an annual conference structure closely modeled on NCTE's.
• National Science Teaching Association (NSTA): Largest U.S. professional organization dedicated to science education; comparable to NCTE in subject-specific membership model, peer-reviewed journals, annual convention, advocacy work, and curated teaching resources.
• TESOL International Association: Global professional association for teachers of English to speakers of other languages; comparable to NCTE in serving English-language educators through memberships, journals (e.g., TESOL Journal), and an annual convention.
• American Educational Research Association (AERA): Premier national research society for education researchers; comparable to NCTE in publishing flagship peer-reviewed journals and hosting a major annual meeting that draws academic educators in ELA-adjacent literacy research.

Broad incumbents

• National Education Association (NEA): The largest U.S. labor union and professional organization representing public school educators across all subjects; overlaps with NCTE in advocacy and professional development for ELA teachers but operates at much broader scale and with a different (union) structural model.
• American Federation of Teachers (AFT): National union of educators and public-sector professionals that includes English teachers among its broader membership; comparable as an incumbent in the ELA educator advocacy space but with a labor-union rather than professional-association charter.
• Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO): Nonpartisan association of state education chiefs that influences ELA standards and policy nationwide; comparable to NCTE in setting ELA direction but from a state-system perspective rather than as a membership-driven teacher community.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ncte
• Facebookfacebook.com/ncte.org
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-council-of-teachers-of-english-ncte-
• Instagraminstagram.com/nctegram

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about National Council of Teachers of English