By Melanie Patterson

The North Jefferson News



Editor’s note: This is the first in a two-part series about teachers who have earned their National Board Certification.



Six teachers in north Jefferson County have recently achieved a goal that few teachers reach: Earning their National Board Certification.

The teachers are:

• Leah Nail Commer of Kimberly, a fifth-grade teacher at Kermit Johnson Middle School.

• Teresa Erbrick, a fifth-grade teacher at Bryan Elementary School

• Rhonda Leggio, a first-grade teacher at Gardendale Elementary School

• Rodney Ragland, a seventh-grade math teacher at Bragg Middle School

• Julie Ramsay, a fifth-grade teacher at Fultondale Elementary School

• Jenny Thompson, choir director at Gardendale Elementary School

Becoming a National Board Certified teacher requires a tremendous amount of work.

All of the teachers submitted their work to the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards by March 31, 2007. They then took an assessment and did not find out the results until November.

As tough as it is, teachers say in the end that it was all worth it.

“When you achieve this standard that has been set — everyone in every state has the same guidelines — that gives real meaning to the achievement,” said Commer. “No one can dispute that.”



Jenny Thompson

“It makes you a better teacher in the long run,” said Thompson. “It makes you look at the way you teach and what you do so you can change what you need to change.”

Thompson said she was excited to read that she had earned the certification.

She said that although the process was grueling, she would do it again.



Julie Ramsay

“It makes you look with a fine-toothed comb at why you do what you do,” she said. “You have to analyze and know every child in your classroom.

Ramsay said the experience changed her from a teacher to an educator.

“I view my class differently now,” she said. “I see them as 52 students [two classes of 26] with unique abilities and needs. It puts test scores on the backburner. … You forget about things like standardized test scores. You’re focused on helping every individual child.”

Ramsay said that throughout the process, she could see improvements in her students.

“I saw every child grow and change in my class last year,” she said. “I could not see that in previous years.

“A lot of this training is getting children to think for themselves,” said Ramsay. “You don’t want to train robots. You want to train independent thinkers.”

Ramsay has been at Fultondale for four years. She taught in Midfield city schools for 10 years.

She said she could not have earned her certification without her husband Gene.

“He was really key with keeping me sane,” said Ramsay. “He took up the slack at home. He read countless versions of my entries.”

He also shot the videos in her classroom that are a part of the certification requirements.

“This is absolutely the most rewarding experience I’ve ever had as an educator,” said Ramsay.



Teresa Erbrick

A teacher at Bryan Elementary for seven years, Erbrick chose to earn her National Board Certification partly for the challenge.

“I wanted to be the best I could be in my field,” she said.

She also wanted to be an example.

Erbrick and her husband Rick have three children, one of whom is still at home. Rhonda Erbrick is a senior at Corner High School

“It’s important that my daughter see I’m always a learner and I want to better myself,” said Erbrick. “I want to be an example for her.”

Getting her certification changed the way Erbrick sees her students.

“It makes me very conscious about what it will do for student learning,” she said. She thinks about “what will make the learning relevant to real life?”

Erbrick said that earning her certification also changed he outlook on life.

“When you go through the process, it is so time-consuming and overwhelming,” she said. “It makes me a better person all around because it makes me cherish the time with my family. Before, I kind of took advantage of it.”

Erbrick said she reflects on the process as being positive.

“At the time I thought, What have I gotten myself into?” she said with a laugh. “But it’s the most important thing I’ve done educationally.”

See Wednesday’s The North Jefferson News for more about teachers who have earned their National Board Certification.