North Carolina…

North Carolina is on track to becoming the first U. S. state to offer Microsoft certification and training to every high school.

The state’s Department of Public Instruction announced November 15, 2010, that the Microsoft IT Academy will give students real-world technology skills from a globally recognized brand name.

North Carolina students are able to earn certification as a Microsoft Office Specialist or a Microsoft Certified Professional by completing the academy’s coursework and passing exams.

Twenty school districts began testing the program in high schools last month. About three dozen North Carolina high schools are using the IT Academy program now. State school officials expect all of the state’s 628 public high schools to participate beginning this fall.