About DNCR's Office of K-12 Education & Outreach

DNCR’s Office of K–12 Education & Outreach — a small but mighty team — supports and elevates teaching and learning across North Carolina through:

  • High quality, year round professional development that equips K–12 teachers with content rich, place based, and interdisciplinary strategies. This includes regional cross disciplinary workshops hosted at DNCR sites, special fellowships, the DNCR Teacher Ambassadors program, and contributions to educator trainings offered by individual DNCR sites and external partners.
  • Capitol Area Visitor Services (CAVS), which coordinates field trips and multiple site visits for DNCR’s downtown Raleigh sites, including the NC State Capitol, NC Executive Mansion, NC Museum of Natural Sciences, NC Museum of History (upon reopening), NC Legislative Building, and NC Freedom Park. 
  • North Carolina History Day, DNCR’s statewide affiliate of the National History Day® program, through which our team organizes eight regional contests and a state level contest each year. We also provide teacher trainings, project based learning support, and student project consultation, helping thousands of middle and high school students develop skills in historical research, critical thinking, and creative expression.
  • School visits and classroom outreach, both in-person and virtual, led by our team or coordinated with DNCR site educators to bring expert programming directly to classrooms statewide.
  • Field trip consultation and funding, helping schools plan meaningful visits while reducing financial barriers for educators and students. We also provide customized trip planning and activity support that enhances classroom learning and maximizes the educational impact of visits to DNCR sites.
  • Ready to use instructional materials that bring North Carolina’s history, culture, and natural environment to life in the classroom.
  • Community programming and events that deepen public engagement and strengthen connections between schools, communities, and local DNCR resources.
     

Education & Teacher Professional Development

Outreach & Internal Professional Development

Capitol Area Visitors Services