Certified Custodial Graduation Ceremony
The School Board of Broward County recently honored 80 Facilities Service personnel for completing a 61-hour Professional Custodial and/or 39-hour Master Custodial course(s) during the 2003-2004 school year. The certified custodial training programs, which started in 1989, have certified more than 830 Professional Custodians and more than 460 Master Custodians to-date.
Facilities Service staffers play a vital role in the operational health of our schools and support the District's belief that a safe and secure environment is essential for teaching and learning. Modern buildings require modern equipment, chemicals and cleaning techniques. With this in mind, Facilities Service personnel must be technically proficient, able to work well within a diverse workforce and meet the demands of an ever-changing educational environment. Congratulations and hats off to all of the District's graduates!
New National Board Certified Teachers
The ranks of Broward's National Board Certified teachers continue to grow. The National Board of Professional Teaching Standards recently notified 169 of the District's teachers that they have earned National Board Certification - one of the profession's most respected achievements. This accomplishment brings the number of National Board Certified teachers in our District to 617, placing us second in Florida and third in the nation. The first two District teachers to achieve this honor were Joy Carter of Bethune Elementary School and Patricia Taback of Blanche Ely High School; they earned it in 1996.
National Board Certification is a symbol of teaching excellence. A voluntary process, it is achieved through an extensive series of performance-based assessments that take nearly a year to complete. Through the process, applicants must:
• document their deep knowledge of the subject matter they teach;
• provide evidence that they know how to teach their subjects to students effectively; and
• demonstrate their ability to manage and measure student learning.
Once National Board Certification is achieved, teachers receive $4,059.80 from the State of Florida and can receive an equal amount if they mentor another teacher in Florida for a minimum of 90 hours. In addition, Broward County rewards them with $2,438.00 or 5% of their base salary, whichever is greater; this "bonus" is divided into installments per paycheck and payment is retroactive to the first calendar day of the year.
If you are interested in learning more about National Board Certification, visit
(
www.broward.k12.fl.us/hrd/nbpts/index.htm)
or contact Gary D. Corbitt in the Human Resources Department at 754-321-5042.
