By Daily Press staff
Twenty-three elementary and secondary school teachers from the Santa Monica- Malibu Unified School District achieved National Board Certification in 2003, according to the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
The percentage of teachers passing certification on their first attempt was 66 percent — nearly double the national rate.
“NBPTS celebrates and congratulates all teachers who went through the rigorous National Board Certification process,” says Board Chair Roy E. Barnes. “This impressive achievement is widely recognized at the national, state and local levels as a bench-mark for teacher quality.”
National Board Certification is the highest credential in the teaching profession. Certification is achieved through a rigorous performance-based assessment that takes between one and three years to complete, and measures what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do. According to the NBPTS, assessment is a process that forces teachers to demonstrate how their activities, both inside and outside of the classroom, improve student achievement.
The NBPTS is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan and non-governmental organization. The majority of members are classroom teachers.
The following teachers completed the rigorous National Board certification process: Amy Beeman-Solano (Santa Monica High School — Samohi), Michael Burnett (Samohi), Heather Calahan (Samohi), Martha Durán-Contreras (formerly Will Rogers Elementary, currently principal at John Muir Elementary), Julie Erb (Malibu High School), Judy Franklin (McKinley Elementary School), Gretchen Gies (Lincoln Middle School), Deborah Granof (Webster Elementary School), Heather Hoekman (Malibu High School), Lorraine Horn (Samohi), Christi Hovest (Point Dume Marine Science Elementary School), Tristen Jones (Will Rogers Elementary School), Katy Lanza (Malibu High School), Bridgette Leonard (Malibu High School), Monica Mora (Malibu High School), Eric Paul (Roosevelt Elementary School), Steve Reifman (Roosevelt Elementary School), Bryan Sanders (Samohi), Susan Stivers (Lincoln Middle School), Susan Suomu (McKinley Elementary School), Amy Teplin (formerly Will Rogers, currently District Literacy Coach), Michelle Welford (Samohi) and Amelia Zimmermann- Wolff (Malibu High School).
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 5, 2003. Read the original PDF.