Jillian Domingo and Elizabeth “Liz” Vallaire, teachers for Woodland Public Schools’ alternative TEAM High School, have spent years learning and working to earn nearly every teaching endorsement to enable them to become highly qualified for all subjects and classes students in their alternative high school may want to take.
Washington State permits educators to teach certain classes without endorsements in particular circumstances if they receive school board approval. These circumstances include teaching at an alternative high school where qualified staff for every subject may be limited. However, Domingo and Vallaire have dedicated themselves to changing that by earning additional endorsements in order to provide their students with the highest quality learning experience, even if the school’s relatively small size means fewer teachers.
When Domingo started teaching at TEAM, she was only certificated in English Language Arts. In her first year, she studied and earned her history certification. “Since I teach all of the humanities, I have since become highly-qualified in Social Studies, Arts, Computer Science, Business and Marketing,” she said. “I also became a National Board Certified teacher to be the best possible educator for my students.” Additionally, over the time since Domingo started teaching at Woodland Public Schools, she has earned a master’s degree in education with a focus on English Language Learners.
Vallaire started teaching at TEAM with an endorsement in Biology in 2015. She started on the path of becoming more credentialed by earning a separate endorsement to teach General Science prior to a change in state requirements which now permit teachers endorsed in any science to teach all sciences.
Vallaire’s path to becoming highly qualified has led her to add endorsements in Mathematics, Arts, and Physical Education/Health. In the past, Vallaire even surprised other staff members in TEAM by earning her art endorsement over a single winter break. “I really wanted to teach art classes because I like the subject matter, so I decided to try to earn my endorsement, but I didn’t tell anyone in case I couldn’t do it,” she remembered. “I buckled down, studied hard, and earned the endorsement over a winter break, which surprised our secretary when we returned since I no longer needed uncertified approval to teach art since I was now qualified.”
The pair’s modesty underlies the duo’s incredible accomplishments – between Domingo and Vallaire, the two teachers are fully-qualified to teach more than 150 classes (70+ classes each) – a list of classes more than 30 pages long covering every school subject, “We’re not quite 100% of the way to being able to teach every single subject, yet, but each of has several teaching certifications so we can best help our students,” explained Domingo. “This way, I’m not just an English Language Arts teacher trying to teach history, I’m qualified; we’ve studied hard, taken the proper courses, and passed the certifications in order to become fully-qualified teachers for the majority of subjects we teach.”
Special education remains the only subject where the two don’t have a certification, however, Vallaire is working on that; she is currently one class away from earning her master’s degree in Special Education from Washington State University. Once she finishes her last class this spring, Vallaire will graduate with summa cum laude honors thanks to her perfect 4.0 Grade-Point Average (GPA). “I’m really proud of myself,” she said. “When I started my master’s degree in 2018, I decided to do it slowly, so I told myself I had no excuse to not ace every single one of my classes.”
Teaching at an alternative high school allows the two to develop close relationships with their students since kids can come and go when their schedules best allow for learning. “We are incredibly proud of the work we put in to make sure we can offer an exceptional education to all of our students,” said Vallaire. “The relationships I get to build with students are so much deeper; it’s so different to have kids that you get to have real conversations with no time constraints.”
Additionally, the two get to spend more time with each student since kids remain at TEAM for all of their classes, not just a single 50-minute period each day. “The one-on-one time with students is exceptional,” said Domingo. “We really get to spend time and come to know each of our students, and we still follow them once they graduate.”
Learning about TEAM High School:
TEAM High School offers Woodland’s students a path to earning a high school diploma that accommodates individual life circumstances such as full-time work, challenges with traditional school schedules, or family responsibilities. To learn more about TEAM High School, how to enroll, or how your organization can partner with Woodland Public Schools, visit the TEAM website at www.woodlandschools.org/team.
Learn more about how Woodland Public Schools educates students and serves the community, by visiting our dedicated news webpage at www.woodlandschools.org/news/wsd
Information provided by Woodland School District.
