Twenty ACPS Teachers Receive Highest Professional Teaching Honor

Twenty Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) teachers have been awarded new or renewed National Board Certification (NBCT) in 2022. The NBCT is the most respected professional certification in education. It is designed to develop, retain and recognize accomplished teachers.

The 2022 cohort consists of two newly certified teachers and 18 ACPS teachers who have maintained their certification. Eligible educators who become Board-certified must demonstrate advanced knowledge, skills and best practices in their certificate area. This process requires commitment, time, writing, reflection and analysis.

The ACPS NBCT-certified teachers were recognized for this distinction at the March 2, 2023, School Board meeting. We want to congratulate them all for earning this certification.

“Working towards the National Boards certification is quite the journey,” said Chief of Teaching, Learning and Leadership Dr. Wendy Gonzalez. “We are so proud of them for successfully taking on this professional challenge to enhance their craft that will ultimately positively impact our students’ learning experiences.”

Congratulations to our New National Board-Certified Teachers: 

• Jessica Angelo, Douglas MacArthur Elementary School, academic interventionist, Literacy: Reading-Language Arts-Early and Middle Childhood
• Megan O’Heran, James K. Polk Elementary School, classroom teacher, early childhood generalist

Congratulations to Renewing National Board-Certified Teachers: 

• Lisa Coughlin, Alexandria City High School (ACHS) – King Street International Academy (IA), IA Earth Science teacher, Science-Adolescence and Young Adult/Earth and Space Science
• Kristin Donley, Central Office-Teaching, Learning and Leadership (TLL), Health/PE/FLE instructional specialist, Early and Middle Childhood Physical Education
• Katrina Ford, Francis C. Hammond Middle School, Math teacher, Secondary Math
• Molly Freitag, ACHS-King Street, Social Studies teacher, Social Studies-History-Adolescence and Young Adulthood
• Pat Gordon, ACHS-King Street International Academy (IA), teacher, team lead/lead mentor, English as a New Language-Early Adolescence through Young Adulthood/Path 2 English Development Specialist
• Angela Green, Central Office: Dept. of Accountability and Research, testing and improvement analyst, early childhood generalist
• Andrea Hill, Cora Kelly School for Math, Science and Technology, literacy instructional coach, Early Childhood Generalist
• Adrienne Hook, Francis C. Hammond Middle School, Math teacher, Secondary Mathematics
• Michelle Lehmann, ACHS-King Street, Social Studies teacher, Social Studies-AYA
• Vantross Medina-White, James K. Polk Elementary School, special education teacher, exceptional needs specialist-Early Childhood through Young Adulthood-Mild/Moderate Disabilities (ages 5-21+)
• Katy Pattarini, George Washington Middle School, technology integration specialist, early childhood generalist
• Sally Preston, ACHS-King Street IA, Teacher, Literacy/Reading Specialist, English as a New Language-Early Adolescence through Young Adulthood/Path 2 English language development specialist
• Amanda Priestley, James. K. Polk Elementary School, English Language teacher, early childhood generalist
• Laura Simons, ACHS-King Street, Science teacher, Science-Adolescence and Young Adulthood/Physics
• Markell Thorne, George Mason Elementary School, Second grade teacher, early childhood generalist
• Tracy Tiernan, Naomi L. Brooks Elementary School, physical education teacher, Physical Education-Early and Middle Childhood
• Bobbi Wade, Douglas MacArthur Elementary School, Second grade teacher, early childhood generalist
• Alison Walter, Francis C. Hammond Middle School (International Academy), Eighth grade teacher, team lead, Social Studies-History, Early Adolescence