Fayetteville, N.C. – Twenty-four teachers from across North Carolina have been selected as finalists for the 2023 North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) Career and Technical Education Teacher of the Year Award, recognizing their dedication, innovation and ability to inspire students to achieve. Cumberland County Schools (CCS) is pleased to announce that Ashley Long McCullen, the agriculture teacher at Gray's Creek High School (GCHS), is one of the esteemed finalists for the coveted NCCAT honor.

From this impressive group of finalists, one educator will be chosen as the NCCAT 2023 NC CTE Teacher of the Year. The award ceremony is scheduled to take place on October 19, 2023, at the Bardo Center on the Western Carolina University campus. The finalists will gather at the NCCAT campus in Cullowhee for a week of professional development from October 16 to 20, 2023.

“Each day in schools, Career and Technical Education teachers inspire and guide students to important future careers and roles in society,” NCCAT Executive Director M. Brock Womble said. “Taking time to honor excellent Career and Technical Education educators across our state through the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) 2023 NC CTE Teacher of the Year program is important, as we are continually striving to elevate the teaching profession and emphasize the significance of the work educators do every day. Congratulations to these finalists and the school districts they represent. We look forward to having them with us for a week of professional development and a special night to honor the teaching profession.”

The NCCAT 2023 NC CTE Teacher of the Year finalists are: