OLYMPIA – Nov. 30, 2004 – Washington’s cadre of National Board Certified Teachers grew significantly this week when the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards announced that 235 teachers achieved certification.

Clockwise from upper left: Kandace Klenz from Moses Lake, Margaret Hesse from Cascade, Melody Pecha from Omak, and Michelle Milne from Cashmere.

Teachers receiving their national certification in the North Central ESD region include Kandace Klenz from Moses Lake, Michelle Milne from Cashmere, Margaret Hesse from Cascade and Melody Pecha from Omak.

Teachers are seeking this prestigious validation of their knowledge and skills in greater numbers, and Washington is leading the nation in supporting and retaining teachers throughout the rigorous process. Even with the ninth highest candidate volume in the country, Washington boasts the highest retention rate of any state in the nation. There were 472 candidates in the Class of 2004 who completed all of the requirements, including the creation of a portfolio of work documenting their success in the classroom and on-line testing. 

"We’ve developed a system in Washington that supports teachers while they’re going through the certification process, and it’s paying dividends for our students,” said Terry Bergeson, state superintendent of public instruction. ”These teachers become more capable in the classroom and more confident about their ability to inspire kids to learn and achieve.”

The system of support has paid off as well with a higher certification rate in Washington than in the nation as a whole. One in two candidates achieved certification this year.

 “It was a lot harder than I thought it would be,” said Becky Hathaway, a 21-year teaching veteran at Elk Ridge Elementary in the White River School District. “At times it was painfully hard. I realized I was working at that highest level of thought—synthesis—pulling from all directions to create something new. The process really challenges you to grow.”

In his ninth year of teaching, social studies teacher Rob Denning debated whether to earn an administrative credential and decided he wanted to stay in the classroom with students. “What I saw about National Board was that, whether I passed or not, the process would help me learn more about what I’m doing—and why—with students,” said Denning, who teaches at Timberline High in the North Thurston School District. 

The process of attaining certification helped Laura Koch find “places where I could be better. I found all the holes in my practice. One weakness was my relationship with parents.”

Koch, who became a new parent herself two days after completing her requirements last April, found she was reaching out just to parents who came in to schools – and changed her practice. “Getting parents more involved definitely helps the kids,” said Koch, a teacher at Broadview Thompson Elementary in the Seattle School District.

Of the 56,000-plus teachers in the state, 581now hold national certification. That number has grown from just 71 teachers four years ago. The Washington Initiative for National Board Certification then set a three-year goal of recruiting 600 teachers to pursue the certification process. That goal has been surpassed, and over 500 teachers have made application for the Class of 2005 alone. 

Many of the teachers who achieved certification this year received support for their efforts through the Washington Initiative for National Board Teacher Certification. To promote this opportunity for professional development as a way to positively impact student learning, Washington Mutual, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Stuart Foundation provide funding to support scholarships, mentoring, and networking to reinforce and sustain teachers through the process.

Successful candidates earn a 10-year certificate; receive a $3,500 annual stipend subject to Washington state legislative appropriation; have their state teaching credentials renewed to match the length of the national certificate; and will be able to apply graduate credits earned while studying for National Board Certification to advanced degrees. 

Many teachers, like Audubon Elementary teacher Dori West in the Lake Washington School District, already have a masters’ degree and see certification as another professional challenge.

West came to teaching after a first career with Boeing, and found that “teaching in the classroom is very different from being in business. There’s no hard-core evidence that I’m performing at a level considered exemplary. I needed that feedback. I have a strong sense that I must do right by the kids in my classroom.” 

Teachers are required to videotape classroom lessons, and her students realized that their teacher was doing something special, West said.  “They liked the fact that their teacher was a learner, too.”

To learn more about the Washington Initiative for National Board Certification or to see a complete list of Washington teachers with National Board Certification, please visit the OSPI Web site: www.k12.wa.us/certification/nbpts/default.aspx . Details about the rigorous process teachers undertake to achieve National Board Certification are available through the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards’ Web site: www.nbpts.org/.