Don't disregard quality teachers

The teachers in the Elgin U-46 School District receive a weekly message from Jose Torres, the District Superintendent. In the latest letter he was encouraging all teachers to "take the necessary steps to become National Board Certified (NBC)." He summarized the steps needed to achieve this and what this certification does for the teacher. He included people that had agreed to take the first step and named the educators that are currently NBCed. There were 28 people identified. This correspondence has been construed by a number of educators as a sort of a slap in the face.

I am not diminishing the credentials of those 28 NBCed teachers, but to read this letter that is what the tone implies. The other 98 to 99 percent of teachers also had to keep their certification current by taking classes and obtaining advanced degrees. Some also were mentors to their peers while others were supervising student teachers.

He sends out this message in the wake of personnel cuts across the board, and service cuts throughout the district. I guess he doesn't know what morale is.

Thomas Duffy

Hoffman Estates