I first attended my local National Board cohort meeting with a colleague to learn more about what National Board Certification was all about. My district provides a cohort through our Staff Development Center, which helped with getting all the necessary information to start the process. . At the time, I was unaware that non-core, special area  teachers could become National Board Certified. During the meeting, I was encouraged to explore the National Board website and look at the standards and requirements for Health Education.

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It was my 19th year of teaching, and I was already a veteran teacher. I wanted to challenge myself professionally and continue growing as an educator. Pursuing National Board Certification gave me the opportunity to slow down my teaching to focus on skills based health. There is a lot of curriculum to cover in health education, but the process helped me prioritize  meaningful, skills based lessons and assessments rather than simply trying to get through the content.

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The process was challenging, especially when COVID interrupted everything, but it was also doable with the support of my cohort. One of the most valuable things I learned was how to  deepen my assessment practices to better determine whether my students were actually learning and applying the skills I was teaching.

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Since becoming certified, I have been able to contribute to the development of multilevel, skills based health curriculum within my district. I also pursued Red Cross instructor training and have certified students in First Aid, CPR, and AED skills. Over the past few years, I have had the opportunity to mentor several student teachers, sharing many of the practices and perspectives I developed through the National Board process.  Ultimately, it helped me become a more intentional teacher and strengthened the way I plan, teach, assess, and reflect on health education.

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Last year, I decided to take on my Maintenance of Certification a year early, and I am currently awaiting my results in December. Looking back, I believe the National Board process has been extremely valuable to me as an educator. Having a cohort to guide and support me throughout the process made a tremendous difference. It was also rewarding to work alongside colleagues from my district and across Western New York who were pursuing the same professional goals.