Founded in 1906, Phi Delta Kappa International (PDK) began as a professional fraternity for educators in higher education. From its inception through the 1960s, PDK experienced steady growth as a national professional association, expanding its focus to include leadership across the K–12 spectrum.

In 1937, the National Education Association (NEA) established Future Teachers of America (FTA) to promote teaching careers among high school students.

In 1994, PDK assumed leadership of FTA from the NEA and rebranded the organization as the Future Educators Association (FEA). Under PDK’s guidance, FEA launched national conferences and competitions in 2005, emphasizing leadership development and teaching competencies.

In 2015, FEA underwent a significant transformation and was rebranded as Educators Rising to reflect a modern, inclusive, and competency-based approach to cultivating the next generation of educators.

Today, Educators Rising continues to expand nationally and is recognized as a vital component of “Grow Your Own” teacher pipeline initiatives across the United States.

Both PDK and Educators Rising share the mission of inspiring and developing current and future educators to become community leaders and advocates for high-quality education. Educators Rising’s visiont to eliminate the teacher shortage by reimagining educator pathways aligns closely with PDK’s core mission.

Educators Rising is grounded in the five core values of its parent organization, PDK International: community, leadership, service, optimism, and excellence. These principles that guide its work in preparing future educators.