Amanda Klare is a National Board Certified fourth-grade teacher at Beechwood Elementary School in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky. She is a Kentucky Hope Street Group fellow for the 2017-2018 school year and serves as a co-director of the Northern Kentucky Writing Project. This year she has started a teacher voice column called “Voices from the Classroom”; this online publication in the Northern Kentucky Tribune has allowed over twenty teachers to be published and share great things going on in their schools.
Leading from the Classroom: How National Board Certification Empowers Teachers
October 4, 2024
By: Amanda Klare, NBCT – Fort Mitchell, Kentucky The words of my high school volleyball coach, echoing in my mind even now, "Never become complacent," have been a driving force throughout my life. It’s a mantra that has pushed me not just to be better for myself, but to strive for excellence so that I can lift others up as well. This pursuit of growth led me to embark on the journey of National Board Certification. It was a path paved with introspection and self-discovery. Watching myself teach and hearing my voice in those early recordings was a humbling experience.…
Read MoreA Badge of Honor
March 6, 2019
After signing on at 5 AM on the National Board Score release day in November 2013 and seeing the words, “Congratulations! You are a National Board Certified Teacher!” I remember feeling the excitement, a sense of relief, and nervous for my friends who went through the process with me who would also be signing on bright and early that morning. Being a self-proclaimed data nerd, I couldn’t wait to delve into my detailed score report to see how I did on the different components. Through the course of working towards becoming certified, you pour your heart and soul into each…
Read MoreFive Core Propositions Applied
April 10, 2018
For those of you who are at the beginning of your journey to become a National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT), you are about to become very familiar with the foundation of National Board Certification: the Five Core Propositions. Since I started my love affair with the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, I have started to associate people from my professional learning network with each of the Five Core Propositions. I always say, “You are what you surround yourself with,” and lucky for me I am surrounded by amazing teacher leaders to strive to be like. Proposition 1: Teachers are…
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