NCPERS Awards & Recognition
We proudly honor public pension leaders and recognize industry progress with NCPERS awards
Throughout the year, NCPERS proudly honors public pension leaders for their accomplishments and recognizes industry progress with our awards programs. Learn more about these opportunities below, and please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions.
NCPERS Champions Awards
The NCPERS Champions Awards celebrate our pension fund members that go above and beyond to foster a culture of learning and leadership. These awards recognize organizations that demonstrate exceptional commitment to ongoing education for trustees and staff—helping strengthen governance and build resilient retirement systems.
The awards are presented annually at NCPERS Annual Conference & Exhibition. Recipients are selected in three categories based on assets under management—less than $1 billion, $1 billion to $50 billion, and greater than $50 billion in size.
NCPERS Pension Partners of the Year Award
The Pension Partners of the Year Award celebrates Service Provider members who make a lasting impact on public pension education. These partners make learning accessible, engaging, and impactful—equipping trustees, staff, and industry stakeholders with the knowledge and tools to strengthen their systems.
The awards are presented annually at NCPERS Annual Conference & Exhibition, honoring partners who elevate education and strengthen our community.
NCPERS Public Pension Communicator of the Year Award
The Public Pension Communicator of the Year Award, presented by NCPERS, honors staff members at public pensions who have demonstrated exceptional leadership skills; shown superior innovation and creativity; and created a positive impact with their communications or member services work in the preceding year.
Winners are celebrated in person at NCPERS Communications & Member Services Summit, and we begin accepting nominations in the fall. Learn more about the nomination process and review the score rubric here.
NCPERS Policymaker of the Year Award
Each year, NCPERS honors a policymaker who has had a positive impact on public pensions or whose efforts have contributed to improvements in retirement security more broadly. Policymakers at the federal, state, and local level are eligible for the Policymaker of the Year Award.
The award is presented during NCPERS Legislative Forum & Policy Day, held in Washington, DC each January.
Certificate of Excellence for Public Pension Reporting and Transparency
Since 2011, NCPERS has conducted its annual Public Retirement Systems Study to explore the retirement practices of the public sector. Public retirement plans across North America are invited to provide data on plan design, investment allocation and returns, actuarial assumptions, and plan governance practices.
The plans that participate are recognized with the Certificate of Excellence for Public Pension Reporting and Transparency for furthering open disclosure, increasing the range of data from which to learn from, and contributing to the public’s understanding of public retirement systems. For more information, please contact research@ncpers.org.
Public Pension Coordinating Council (PPCC) Standards Awards
The Public Pension Coordinating Council (PPCC) is a coalition of three national associations that represent public retirement systems and administrators: National Association of State Retirement Administrators (NASRA), the National Council on Teacher Retirement (NCTR) and NCPERS (National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems).
The Public Pension Standards are intended reflect minimum expectations for public retirement system management and administration, as well as serve as a benchmark by which all defined benefit public plans should be measured. The retirement systems and the state and local governments that sponsor them are encouraged to meet these standards.
The Standards are separated into the Administrative Standard and the Funding Standard. A system may qualify and receive a Recognition Certificate for either the Administrative or Funding Standard. A system that qualifies for both certificates will be awarded the Public Pension Coordinating Council Standards Award. For more information, please contact membership@ncpers.org.