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Abstract
Since 2000, North Carolina has offered an alternative route to licensure for adults who desire to move into teaching from other careers. NC TEACH is a statewide alternative teacher preparation program aimed at recruiting, supporting, and retaining highly skilled mid-career professionals who seek to enter the teaching profession through the lateral-entry pathway. NC TEACH has undergone several cycles of improvement and refinement since its inception. While continuing to be offered in its original face-to-face version, the program's strong cohort model has been replicated in a completely online environment with the development of NC TEACH OnLine in 2004. This article examines the main components of the NC TEACH program. Although the details of NC TEACH are specific to North Carolina, the experience with a viable, ever-evolving, statewide alternative licensure program can provide guidance to other states that wish to consider a similar approach to meeting the demand for new teachers.