Renton has new board certified teachers

Eighteen Renton School District teachers have met rigorous standards to achieve the “gold standard of teacher credentials,” helping the state to secure a top spot among others in the nation.

Renton’s 2013 National Board Certified teachers are John Austin, Erin Belka, Terry Derrig, Sarah Erickson, Beth Hansen, Lily Higgins, Jennifer Kalmbach, Kilty Keaton, Jennifer Koch, Rachel Lake, Heather Nelson, Ruthann Nelson, Stephanie Norton, Claudia Paul-Hergert, Lyn Robertson, Kirstin Roy, Alfred Sidman and Mary Jane Wyeth.

The teachers now have their National Board Certification and are a part of nearly 100 teachers in the district to have such credentials. Washington state now ranks third in the nation with nearly 7,000 National Board Certified teachers, according to a district press release. With an additional 575 teachers this year, Washington is second only to North Carolina.

To reach this certification, educators did intensive study and underwent expert evaluation, self-assessment and peer review. The process takes hundreds of hours of professional and personal time to attain the certification.

Teachers had to submit four classroom portfolio entries, each of which includes a video and student work. They must also document their work outside of the classroom with colleagues, families, the community and detail how those efforts influence student learning. Then candidates complete six 30-minute exercises to demonstrate their content knowledge in the certificate field. Last, a dozen trained evaluators in the same field appraise a candidate’s portfolio submissions against National Board standards.

 

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