National Board Certified Teacher | Terri Sue Ross

National Board Certification

Joining this family of Beloit’s NBC teachers was a life-changing experience, says Ross who is quick to explain that the process was enlightening for her as an educator and happily coincided with the long awaited adoption of two daughters.

Established in 1987, the National Board for Certification is the profession’s means of identifying and recognizing teachers who meet criteria for measuring excellence in their profession, and a challenging process it is says Ross, who recently received certification out of a not uncommon second attempt.

Married to husband Paul since 2005, Ross says, “Speaking of Paul, he deserves credit. I spent most weekends at the kitchen table working. He made dinner, cleaned, and watched a lot TV when I was busy working. This process requires a lot of sacrifice from your family. He supported me through each and every moment. He picked me up after I didn’t pass the first time and cried with me when I did.”

The dedication to teaching that Ross says inspired and motivated her to explore and then try, try again and earn her certification is clear in her credentials. She says, “I have taught all 15 years of my teaching career at Merrill in Kindergarten. I love Kindergarten because the students generally love to learn and think you are the smartest person alive. I can’t sing to save my life but when you sing for Kindergarteners you usually hear ‘You sing so beautiful and you are beautiful too.’ Who wouldn’t want to work when you hear that everyday.

Continuing, she says, “I have my Bachelor’s degree from UW-Whitewater in PreK-6. I have a Master’s degree from National Louis University in Curriculum and Instruction. I am also an Innovation Coach for Merrill and a PBIS Coach for our school as well.”

Home & School Support

Concerning her board certification, Ross says, she was following in the footsteps of district teachers who led the way, including, Beloit Memorial High School teachers Lyman Elliot and Matt Flynn and Heidi Andre as well as Aldrich Reading Specialist Cyntha Slavish who was among the first in the district to achieve certification.

“I started this process after hearing Lyman Elliot and Matt Flynn at the SDB summer learning conference in 2013,” Ross says. “A group of teachers from Merrill started to look into even more and it ended with me, Amanda Mortimer & Sharyl Fuerstenburg going forward. I don’t know what I would have done without Sharyl and Amanda to keep me going.

“In our first attempt, we went to all the retreats that WEAC offered. It was fun to get away with them, but it was also helpful to be able to bounce ideas off of them. Lyman, Matt, Cyntha and Heidi helped with proof reading my papers and easing me through my stress and panic attacks.

“When we didn’t certify on our first attempt, it was hard, but we kept going. I choose to redo everything. In the early morning on the November day 2014 when I found out I didn’t pass that first time, my husband and I — okay my husband — crunched the numbers to see what I would have to do to pass on the second attempt. I choose to redo the two papers and three tests that didn’t pass and not leave any ‘what ifs’ by not redoing all that I could.

Home & School Families

“Having a district like Beloit support your efforts was a great motivator as well. Thankfully our district and school board have stood behind their teachers.

“As I got into the process,” she said, noting that certified teachers qualify for increased salary considerations that, for example, can be helpful in paying for undergraduate and graduate student loans, “it became more about being that teacher the NBC asks you to be.

I feel like a part of me is asking ‘Is that what a National Board Certified teacher would do?’ Going through the process makes you want to do more — to find that one way that works best for each of your students.

For Ross, it is also important to think about the fact that the beginnings of her certification process not only coincided with but are very linked to the adoption process for her and her husband. Simply, both involve the most important things in her life – her at home and at school families – both of which support the other in the sense that they make her aware of how important it is to try your best and be grateful for the opportunity to teach and nuture children.

“We were approved to be foster parents in February of 2015, on our 10th wedding anniversary,” she says. “We received news that we would get to meet two little girls.

Home & School Children

Through the summer we bonded with these girls every weekend and they moved in with us on September 5th.  They are 18 months and three and have made our lives complete.”

With the joy of the girls, and watching her husband be a father for the first time, Ross admits, “When I received the email our scores were being released, I realized that I hadn’t thought about the national boards in a long while. On Friday, November 6th, I went to sleep and woke up around 1 a.m. on Saturday, November 7th. I thought well ‘get this over.’ As I logged into the network, I was asked to type my name the way I would like it to appear on my certificate. I thought, ‘Hey, I get a certificate for not passing. Wow!’

And then it asked who would you like us to notify of your achievement? That is when I looked up and saw this little bar across the top saying ‘Congratulations! You are a National Board Certified Teacher!’ They could have made that bigger! I still don’t believe I passed. It is slowly sinking in. It is hard for me to accept that so many great things have been happening. First the girls and now National Board Certification.”

Each is a life changing event that will help her every day be inspired to be the best she can be with her children – at home and at school.

About National Board Certification

National Board Certification (NBC) indicates a teacher is more than highly qualified, demonstrating not only content knowledge and teaching methods, but deeper understanding of multiple content areas and overwhelming proof of increased student achievement as a result of the teacher’s instructional strategies.
Only 1-2% of the state’s teachers have this highest certification; less than 3% of teachers nationwide have achieved this level.

The process involves completing four portfolio entries, combining written assessments and video samples of the teachers in the classroom, to provide judges the proof of each candidates’ eligibility to receive this top certification. The process is voluntary; a little over a third of the participants pass on their first attempt. Certificates are only valid for 10 years, requiring NBC teachers to continue their professional growth and excellent instruction.

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