Three local teachers have received $3,000 stipends for earning National Board Certification.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Denise Juneau recently honored two Flathead High School teachers — Sue Corrigan, exceptional needs specialist and Megan Koppes, English — and Columbia Falls High School art teacher Jenny Stone.

“I am proud to acknowledge these outstanding educators for their hard work and dedication to furthering excellence in education,” Juneau said in a press release. “National Board Certification is a significant accomplishment and an asset to the school district, the students and the community.”

The certification involves extensive performance-based assessments that include teaching portfolios, student work samples, videotapes and analyses of teaching methods and student learning. Certification is usually completed over the course of a year.

Inspired by her colleagues, Koppes began the process in 2011.

“I was teaching freshman academy with a very inspiring group of teachers. As a group, we were always looking for new ideas and ways to improve ourselves as teachers,” Koppes said in an email to The Daily Inter Lake. “Sue Corrigan and I were co-teaching a class, and we supported each other through the certification process.”  

She was a mom with a mission, and achieved certification in fall 2012.

“I was pregnant with my second child while undergoing the process of the certification. I sent off my portfolio two days before my daughter was born, and I took the tests when she was just a couple months old,” Koppes said. “I then took a year of maternity leave, and am now back at FHS full time as a Nationally Board Certified teacher.”

The certification process, Koppes said, “helped me to keep my head in the game.”

“As a teacher, constant reflection on your practice is what makes a great teacher,” Koppes said.

Koppes said the individualized process helped her focus on personal teaching strategies and improve student progress and support.

Corrigan started the certification process in 2010 and became certified in December 2011. Corrigan said she wanted to become certified to keep up with the latest research in education.

“I have benefited by realizing that even when things don’t go as planned in a lesson, students still learn,” Corrigan said in an email. “They may even remember the lesson better because of the imperfections. I understand that it is crucial to have high expectations for students and to support them in a variety ways to improve their chance for successful learning.

For Corrigan, professional growth involves lifelong learning.

“This was a humbling experience as it required that I record and observe my own teaching. After this I realize how much more I have to learn about teaching, and I have been at this for a long time,” Corrigan said. “Learning is a lifelong challenge.”

Late last year, Stone said the certification process gave her new insights in her teaching.

“It was literally life-changing for me in the classroom. I just look at everything as a teacher differently,” Stone said.

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or by email at