Four Valley View Teachers Achieve National Board Certification

Four Valley View School District 365U teachers have achieved the coveted National Board Certification issued by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS).

Oak View Elementary School English as a Second Language teacher Adelina Rivera, Beverly Skoff supported education resource teacher Mary Arp, Irene King 5th grade special education teacher Karen Trajkovich and Bolingbrook High School AP U.S. history teacher John Flynn all earned the honor.

“Teachers who become National Board Certified are highly effective and strengthen student achievements,” said Ron Thorpe, president and CEO of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. “They demonstrate the powerful impact that accomplished teachers have daily in their classrooms.”

Rivera has been with Valley View for seven years, spending the past two years as an ESL teacher at Oak View. She has also been an ESL teacher at both Pioneer and Beverly Skoff. Prior to joining VVSD, she taught for four years in the Chicago Public Schools system. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree from DePaul and a Master’s from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

“I’m very happy to have received such an honor and I look forward to serving our diverse English Language Learners,” she said. “I wouldn’t have been able to successfully complete this journey without the love and support of my family.”

Arp, who spent two years in the Rockdale school district before coming to Skoff six years ago, holds a Bachelor of Science in Education Degree with an emphasis on art from Northern Illinois University and a Master of Arts in Multicategorical Special Education Degree from Governor’s State University.

“I am grateful for the support of my family, friends and co-workers while I worked on my National Boards,” she said.

Trajkovich has been at Irene King since 2007, serving as a special education co-teacher for the past three years. Prior to coming to Valley View, she taught for a year in a multi-needs program in Lombard and a year as a resource teacher in Clarendon Hills. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Illinois State University and a Master’s in special education from National Lewis University.

“I am beyond overjoyed at receiving this honor,” she said. “I am convinced that hard work, a genuine passion for teaching, and high expectations of all students will achieve amazing results.”

Flynn, who teaches modern world history in addition to AP U.S. history, came to BHS seven years ago, after serving as a long-term substitute math and computer sciences instructor at Brooks Middle School for a year. The former President of Callero Management Information Services holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in business and psychology from Augustana College and a Master’s in Education from the University of St. Francis.

“The National Board Certification process offered me fantastic insight into what a good teacher must do in the classroom in order to help students be successful,” he said. “Achieving NB status is just a beginning as it comes with a great deal of responsibility to become a true leader as we try to focus on positive change within our district.”

The NBPTS is widely recognized as the source for the highest standards and practices that lead to improved teaching, leading and learning. National Board Certification, a voluntary assessment program designed to develop, retain and recognize accomplished teachers, and to embed ongoing school improvement in schools nationwide, is achieved through performance-based assessment and testing that takes one to three years to complete.

While state teacher credentialing programs set the basic requirements to teach in each state, National Board Certified Teachers must demonstrate advanced teaching knowledge, skills and practices. Completion of the NBPTS certification process signifies that teachers have developed and demonstrated the skills required of an accomplished education professional.

All four will be honored before the VVSD Board of Education on Jan. 14.

Editor's note: This is a press release from Valley View School District 365U. 

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