08-02-2025
Buddy West teacher wraps up national certification in a year
Feb. 7—Buddy West Elementary School second grade bilingual teacher Karen Del Rio loves to learn, a fact that was borne out by her completion of National Board Certification within a year.
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) certification typically takes three years. Adriana Carmona, a bilingual special education teacher at Buddy West, also earned the recognition. National Board Certification is considered the "gold standard" of teacher certification.
Through a multi-year, multi-million-dollar grant, the Permian Strategic Partnership provides over $3,000 dollars per candidate to pay for component submissions and support.
She said a friend and colleague at Buddy West, Claudia Ruiz, encouraged her. They both taught kindergarten and Del Rio said she did her certification as a kindergarten teacher.
Del Rio said Ruiz has a positive effect on fellow teachers and is always asking what's next and what can they grow in. Ruiz suggested they tackle National Board Certification together. Del Rio thought it would be too much work, but Ruiz prompted her to take on the challenge.
When she found out she earned National Board Certification, she was kind of stunned.
"I did all of it in a year. I took my test at the end of May, and you have no feedback on all of your work for six months. When I logged in, I've heard that you get fireworks when you've certified. So I logged in, and then this little, like dot, kind of flies across the screen, and I'm like ... that's a firework. I did it. ... I was shocked. I was very happy," Del Rio said.
This is Del Rio's fourth year at Buddy West, but she has been teaching for 17 years. She earned a bachelor's degree in bilingual education from Texas A&M University and her master's in educational psychology from Kent State University in Ohio.
Getting her master's degree changed the way she taught and National Board Certification has done the same.
"I think in any profession, no matter what it is, we should always be learning and growing and not grow stagnant," Del Rio said.
Adriana Carmona, a bilingual special education teacher at West Elementary, got a National Board exceptional needs specialist recognition.
Four teachers from Buddy West challenged National Board Certification together.
From the description of the National Board Certification program, Del Rio said she wondered why she couldn't do it all in a year. Director of Professional Development Kelly Stansell said it was possible, but only if Del Rio was crazy. That aside, when she realized it was possible, she went for it.
"Because there were three other co-workers doing it, we did it as a team. ... We would look at each other's work and give one another ideas. I feel like that was a huge piece of my success was that I did not do it alone. I did it with three other amazing teachers who helped push me," Del Rio said.
A self-described go-getter, she decided to put pedal to the metal and get the process finished fast.
"I also did my master's degree in one year, so I didn't want to drag it out. Once I heard what it was, I just believed in myself enough to do it. I knew that I had the support. The other significant support that I had was the Texas Coalition for Teachers. They partnered with ECISD to support candidates. They had monthly Zoom meetings and in-person sessions where I could show my work to other accomplished teachers and get feedback on my writing, on my work and on my teaching.
"I attended every single session that was offered. That was another huge component, because I had people looking at what I was doing in the classroom. Part of what we do is we have to video ourselves, and they would ask me questions like, how are you differentiating your instruction? Which means, how am I teaching both kids the content" and giving students with different abilities what they need," Del Rio said.
She didn't think she could do both at once, but was told that accomplished teachers could, so when she was planning a lesson she tried to figure out how to do that.
"Part of this process for me was becoming that teacher that can see, how can I give the struggling student and the high achieving student what they need in one single lesson. It's possible," Del Rio said.
Del Rio has always wanted to be a teacher.
"I had really great teachers my entire life. They made school fun. They made learning accessible. I was pushed. I was encouraged. From high school, I would volunteer at different kids programs. I've always liked being with kids. I've loved to babysit, and so I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher," she added.
She went to high school in Troy, Ohio, although she was born in Minnesota and went to elementary school in Denver, Colo. She learned Spanish at age 19 and became bilingual certified.
"I think that's a I don't know, a nice part of my story is that at any point in your life you can learn something new and you should learn something new. It's how we keep changing and getting better," Del Rio said.
Principal Nora Gonzales was thrilled with her teachers' accomplishments.
"As a principal, I am incredibly proud of my teachers (Mrs. Del Rio and Ms. Carmona) for achieving National Board Certification. Their dedication, hard work, and commitment to excellence are truly inspiring. This accomplishment not only reflects their passion for teaching but also enhances the quality of education for our students. I celebrate their success and their positive impact on our school community," Gonzales said.
Stansell said she admired Del Rio's approach to the certification.
"Karen dedicated herself to the National Board process. She attended every Saturday in-person session and used the virtual meetings to ask questions, get feedback then refine her writing. To be successful on all four components in one year is almost unheard of. She is an amazing teacher.
"I loved watching Karen's process for addressing her National Board Standards, the Architecture of Accomplished Teaching and her Component prompts. She would sit in the floor with all her papers spread out in front of her reading through and internalizing each piece separately, then bring it all together in her head before she would begin to write. It was amazing to watch," Stansell said.
The number of Ector County ISD teachers who hold National Board certification more than doubled this year as seven new teachers achieved this prestigious designation. Last year, the first five ECISD teachers earned the certification. The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) certification is considered the "gold standard" of teacher certification. National Board-Certified Teachers must demonstrate standards-based evidence of the positive effect they have on student learning.
The ECISD educators who achieved National Board certification are:
— Da'Niel Beauchamp, 7th grade Math Multi-Classroom Leader at Bowie Middle School (Mathematics, Early Adolescence)
— Andrea Berndt, Kindergarten Multi-Classroom Leader at Ross Elementary (Literacy, Early and Middle Childhood)
— Adriana Carmona, Bilingual Special Education at West Elementary (Exceptional Needs Specialist)
— Karen Del Rio, 2nd grade Bilingual at West Elementary (English as a New Language, Bilingual)
— Courtney Hawley, Early Childhood at Austin Elementary (Generalist Early Childhood)
— Erika Pocaterra, 5th grade Bilingual at Hays STEAM Academy (Generalist, Middle childhood)
— Valarie Shreves, 5th grade Reading/Language Arts Multi-Classroom Leader at Ross Elementary (Literacy, Early and Middle Childhood)
