March 27, 2025
Litchfield Elementary Honored as First National Board District of Distinction
The Arizona K12 Center is proud to recognize Litchfield Elementary School District as the 2025 National Board District of Distinction for its comprehensive support of National Board Certification.
“We are honored to recognize Litchfield Elementary School District as the inaugural National Board District of Distinction,” said Center Executive Director Daniela Robles. “National Board Certification is connected with both increases in student learning and in teacher retention. The support that Litchfield Elementary leadership has provided, both financially and culturally to this work, demonstrates its commitment to educators’ professional growth and students’ academic achievement.”
For the past 16 years, the Arizona K12 Center, a part of Northern Arizona University, has recognized individual educators who have achieved or maintained National Board Certification. The Center has also begun to honor Arizona school systems that have embraced the power of this rigorous certification process. Beginning this year, that includes naming one Arizona school system as a National Board District of Distinction for its comprehensive support of National Board Certification.
The Arizona K12 Center announced Litchfield Elementary as the National Board District of Distinction at its 16th Annual Celebration of Accomplished Teaching, Saturday, March 22.
Take a look at Litchfield Elementary’s National Board program in this video:
National Board Certification is the highest certificate an educator can achieve in the United States. The certification process enhances teaching practice, ultimately better supporting Arizona’s students.
Administered by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, National Board Certification is a rigorous and reflective process that requires teachers to demonstrate the National Board Standards in their practice. Teachers often take three to five years of continual work to achieve certification.
In her remarks at the event, Arizona K12 Center Executive Director Daniela Robles, NBCT, noted how Litchfield Elementary provides a $3,000 stipend to National Board Certified Teachers but also finds other formal ways to show support for Litchfield educators pursuing certification. Litchfield Elementary gives National Board candidates two paid in-service days to focus on their National Board submissions. One of those days is used in the fall, when Litchfield’s three candidate support providers put on a full-day, in-district National Board Kickoff. The district provides substitutes for those candidates’ classrooms, and candidates are able to come together, meet for coaching with candidate support providers, and work on their components.
The culture and strong community of support that Litchfield Elementary has created around professional growth and National Board Certification is evident in its number of new candidates to the National Board Certification process. The elementary district west of Phoenix has 31 candidates and 16 National Board Certified Teachers.
In Arizona, the Arizona K12 Center is the home for support and resources for teachers seeking National Board Certification. Altogether, Arizona is currently home to approximately 1,842 NBCTs.
Learn more about National Board Certification at azk12.org/national-board-certification
“We are honored to recognize Litchfield Elementary School District as the inaugural National Board District of Distinction,” said Center Executive Director Daniela Robles. “National Board Certification is connected with both increases in student learning and in teacher retention. The support that Litchfield Elementary leadership has provided, both financially and culturally to this work, demonstrates its commitment to educators’ professional growth and students’ academic achievement.”
For the past 16 years, the Arizona K12 Center, a part of Northern Arizona University, has recognized individual educators who have achieved or maintained National Board Certification. The Center has also begun to honor Arizona school systems that have embraced the power of this rigorous certification process. Beginning this year, that includes naming one Arizona school system as a National Board District of Distinction for its comprehensive support of National Board Certification.
The Arizona K12 Center announced Litchfield Elementary as the National Board District of Distinction at its 16th Annual Celebration of Accomplished Teaching, Saturday, March 22.
Take a look at Litchfield Elementary’s National Board program in this video:
National Board Certification is the highest certificate an educator can achieve in the United States. The certification process enhances teaching practice, ultimately better supporting Arizona’s students.
Administered by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, National Board Certification is a rigorous and reflective process that requires teachers to demonstrate the National Board Standards in their practice. Teachers often take three to five years of continual work to achieve certification.
In her remarks at the event, Arizona K12 Center Executive Director Daniela Robles, NBCT, noted how Litchfield Elementary provides a $3,000 stipend to National Board Certified Teachers but also finds other formal ways to show support for Litchfield educators pursuing certification. Litchfield Elementary gives National Board candidates two paid in-service days to focus on their National Board submissions. One of those days is used in the fall, when Litchfield’s three candidate support providers put on a full-day, in-district National Board Kickoff. The district provides substitutes for those candidates’ classrooms, and candidates are able to come together, meet for coaching with candidate support providers, and work on their components.
The culture and strong community of support that Litchfield Elementary has created around professional growth and National Board Certification is evident in its number of new candidates to the National Board Certification process. The elementary district west of Phoenix has 31 candidates and 16 National Board Certified Teachers.
In Arizona, the Arizona K12 Center is the home for support and resources for teachers seeking National Board Certification. Altogether, Arizona is currently home to approximately 1,842 NBCTs.
Learn more about National Board Certification at azk12.org/national-board-certification
