Clary Carleton at Open High School was one of three Richmond Public Schools teachers recently awarded the prestigious National Board Certification, a program offered through the nonprofit National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Program participants must develop a school-site portfolio of student work samples, videotaped lessons and reflective commentaries, and also pass test questions that demonstrate their subject matter knowledge. The program takes one to two school years and requires an additional 200-400 hours of preparation. [via]

Richmond’s Open and Community high schools received silver and bronze medals, respectively, in the US News and World Report Best High Schools and High School Rankings. More than 18,500 schools located in 40 states were analyzed according to how well students performed on state tests, how well each school’s disadvantaged students performed and whether the school was successful in providing college-level coursework. Community was one 3 percent to be awarded a gold or silver medal. Open was one of 6 percent, to earn bronze. [via]