Picture finishing 2027 with nine graduate credits from Arizona State University's W. P. Carey School of Business; a graduate certificate on your transcript; and sharper answers to the tough questions your students ask about investing, risk, and money. No tuition, no live sessions, and a workload built for teachers in the middle of a school year. Here's how to plan for it.

Why Teachers Say It's Worth It

These aren't generic graduate courses. Each one picks up where an NGPF certification course leaves off, taking you deeper into the material you already teach. You learn from ASU faculty, work entirely on your own schedule in Canvas, and spend about 1 to 2 hours a week. There are no weekly deadlines and no live sessions.

The program is open to current U.S. high school (grades 9 to 12) classroom teachers with an undergraduate degree. Special education teachers serving high-school-age students and instructional coaches who teach at least one high school section are eligible, too.

More than 660 teachers have already enrolled. Here's what some of them told us:

"These are the first college courses I've ever taken that made me want to continue to the next module and I didn't want them to end!" (Sarah Kraus, NE)

"I loved the quality of the examples in the lessons! The analogies helped me make connections and have ways to explain the concepts to my students." (Tammy Andrew, CT)

"I really enjoyed the different instructors at ASU and the perspectives and expertise they brought to different areas of risk management." (Ann Hamil, KS)

What Graduate Credit Can Do for Your Career

Each course carries 3 graduate credits and $1,750 in tuition that NGPF and the Stiles-Nicholson Foundation cover in full. Take all three and that's 9 credits, worth $5,250, for a one-time $70 ASU fee.

• License renewal. Graduate credit from an accredited university is one of the most widely accepted forms of PD for renewing a teaching license. In some states, including West Virginia, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, and Kentucky, transcripted university credit is the only outside PD that counts toward renewal. See how your state handles PD credit on our State PD Credits page.
• Salary advancement. Many districts move teachers across the salary schedule based on graduate credits earned after their degree. Check with your district's HR office to see how these credits could count toward your next lane change.
• Graduate certificates. Complete Investment Management and Risk Management to earn ASU's Core Graduate Certificate. Add Psychology & Technology to earn the Specialization Graduate Certificate.
• A head start on a master's. Your credits transcript at ASU and can apply toward the Master of Arts in Education through ASU's Mary Lou Fulton College.

Plan Your 2027: Work Backward From the Prerequisite Deadline

There's no public application. On each date in the last column, NGPF emails an invitation to apply to every eligible teacher who has already finished that course's prerequisites. Finish after that date and you'll wait a full year for the next round.

Already finished Investing and Advanced Investing? You're set for Spring A. Watch your inbox on October 29.

Still need Investing or Advanced Investing? Spring A isn't an option this year, since invitations go out before the next certification cohort wraps up. Investment Management runs again in 2028, so finishing those two courses this year puts you first in line. In the meantime, Summer A and Fall A are still well within reach.

Aiming for Risk Management or Psychology & Technology? Each certification course takes about 10 hours, so a Credit, Insurance, Cryptocurrency Basics, or Behavioral Economics cohort this fall or winter puts you comfortably on track for summer or fall.

Update your NGPF profile. We use the school listed on your NGPF profile to confirm your eligibility, so an out-of-date school could mean you miss your invitation to apply. Take a minute to make sure yours is current.

Ready to Earn Your Credits?

Pick the course you want, check which prerequisites you still need, and put that deadline on your calendar today. You can find upcoming cohorts on the NGPF Certification Courses page, and full program details in the NGPF/ASU Partnership Guide and FAQ.

Not sure whether your role qualifies? Email Abby Richards-Hatton at abby@ngpf.org and she'll help you check.

About the Author

Abby Richards-Hatton

Abby joined NGPF as an Administrative Assistant in August 2025. She spent several years working as a legal assistant for a corporate law firm before transitioning into the nonprofit field. She is a graduate of San Francisco State University where she studied Political Science.

More posts by Abby