Aug 14, 2023 | COpilot
Meet Brittany Metke – One of our amazing COpilot Facilitators!
Brittany teaches math at PSD Global Academy and is a proud member of the Poudre Education Association.
How long have you been facilitating COpilot classes and what made you want to do it?
I have been a COpilot facilitator since 2019 and what drew me to it was the applicable learning opportunities from other teachers just like me! We share similar passions, highs and lows and I always felt heard as a participant. I had the opportunity to start sharing skills, philosophies and resources that really supported me as an educator and what I felt every teacher should have the access to!
Why are you OR why did you become an educator?
I always grew up claiming “I wanted to be a teacher” as I naturally felt drawn to kids, helping others learn and bringing joy and encouragement to those who needed a little push! I’m a firm believer in “all can do”! My sister and I always loved playing school as kids, creating grade books, lessons, and implementing them pretending to be each other’s students, and here we both are, teachers in PSD and COpilot facilitators! I have really found my place in middle school and love learning with and from kids these ages!
When you’re not working with kids or facilitating COpilot classes, what is your favorite thing to do?
I love spending my time with my family, traveling, singing the alphabet forwards, and backwards, with my 3 year old, Noah, and exploring with my 1 year old, Micah! My husband, Troy, and I both have a secret passion for social media and writing recipes for a local restaurant in NOCO, Jim’s Wings, and we’re equally as passionate about the Iowa Hawkeyes! Definitely no dull moments around our house, especially because we’re just coming up on our one year anniversary of moving in, and I’m extremely thankful to be part of the CEA COpilot community!
Brittany will facilitate several classes that start next week! Click the links below to enroll in one of her great classes.
Jun 20, 2021 | Blog
821,008 feet. That is the total elevation of the fifty-eight 14ers in Colorado. Those stunning mountains act as both a literal and figurative divide that splits our state into the front range and rural Colorado. Oftentimes, this very real (and very tall) barrier creates ideological differences, inequitable resource allocation, and a lack of opportunity that pose threats to rural communities.
The same divide also finds its way into public education. Here we see rural Colorado has a distinct disadvantage compared to its suburban and urban counterparts. Front range school districts are better funded, have more and newer resources, and give educators opportunities to engage in the most recent and relevant professional learning programs. Unfortunately, rural communities don’t enjoy many of those geographically-dependent advantages.
Luckily, there are groups working on behalf of rural Colorado communities to change the opportunities for educators who choose to live and work far from the I-25 corridor. In 2017, the Colorado Education Association (CEA) partnered with the University of Northern Colorado Center for Rural Education and the Colorado Department of Higher Education to offer the National Board Certified Teacher Stipend. National Board Certification is an opportunity to retain excellent in-service teachers by honoring the hard work that teachers do to become certified and act as leaders in their field. The Stipend program, according to the UNC Rural Education Center, provides “All NBCT stipend recipients [with] support and mentorship from NBCT facilitators in a Colorado Rural National Board cohort. The value of the stipend is $4,250.00.”
The NBCT rural cohorts are fully facilitated by Colorado Education Association members. Karl Ramsen, a cohort facilitator from the Lake County Education Association, says, “I have no desire to become an administrator, but at this point in my career I also want to have an impact beyond the classroom. Facilitating a cohort has allowed me to become a teacher-leader in my district by helping other teachers reflect on their practice and encouraging them to pursue continuous improvement.”
Each cohort has anywhere from 14 to 20 educators who teach in rural Colorado school districts. Each cohort lasts two years, and upon completion of the program, enrolled educators will have submitted materials for all four NBCT components, allowing them to earn the certification. Not only does the NBCT certification demonstrate an educator’s leadership and prowess as an expert teacher, but it also comes with a substantial pay increase in a majority of Colorado school districts.
These kinds of programs that directly benefit rural Colorado educators can often be the sole reason why folks continue to teach in rural schools versus moving to a larger district. Valerie Sherman, the UNC Rural Center Director, notes, “Between Fall 2017 and Summer 2018, before the Center partnered with CEA and developed the Rural National Board Cohort, we awarded a total of 14 NBCT stipends. After partnering with CEA, we have awarded 36 stipends.” While the number seems small, in rural school districts, keeping 36 educators employed means they don’t have to spend valuable dollars hiring new teachers. More importantly, students receive more continuity from expert teachers, resulting in better teaching and learning in nearly every district where NBCT candidates work. Kris Kaplinski, a cohort facilitator from the Aspen Education Association, explains, “The Rural National Board Cohort removes the isolation and replaces it with a support system and group of like-minded educators who are all experiencing the same thing at the same time.”
This type of collaborative, supported professional learning Kaplinski mentions is difficult to attain in rural Colorado as many communities are relatively isolated from one another. According to Rachel Graham, a recent National Board Certified Teacher and current rural cohort facilitator out of the Estes Park Education Association, “Teachers are able to connect with others across the state, support each other and have mentors to coach them through the rigorous process. Rural districts are often isolated from the best practices happening in classrooms and this program allows connection with others.” These types of communities are a key factor to ensure that candidates grow their teaching practices while also remaining in rural Colorado school districts.
Beyond providing measurable, objective professional growth as teachers, the NBCT Stipend program also allows CEA members to earn more money, which means they can continue living and working in rural communities. Ramsen, Graham, and Jeff White, a long time facilitator from the Aspen Education Association, all note the direct monetary benefit tied to National Board certification. In fact, Ramsen was the key advocate in helping push the district to provide a monetary incentive for NBCTs in Leadville. His leadership on that front is yet another example of how the NBCT Stipend program benefits the Union. Through the rural cohorts, CEA and local associations are growing new leaders who passionately care about rural Colorado.
Yes, Colorado is divided, but mountains that scrape the clear blue skies are not enough to prevent the CEA from working with other like-minded organizations to address the barriers that make it difficult for rural Colorado educators to find high quality professional learning opportunities. Jeff White from Aspen sums it up best: “National Board Certification is an opportunity to grow and self-reflect in a process created by teachers; it is not easy. I love to hike, ski, and reach new heights. Since I really have no interest in administration, National Board Certification was the mountain I wanted to climb professionally.” By climbing that mountain and helping others do the same, Jeff, along with other cohort facilitators, are helping union members who choose to live and work in rural communities make a difference for themselves, their students, and their communities.
Casey Kilpatrick is the Director of Learning Services at the Colorado Education Association and is a former high school English teacher.
Apr 7, 2020 | Press
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 7, 2020
Enrollment in COpilot surges for free, peer-to-peer distance learning coursework to enhance student outcomes during school closures
DENVER – For three years, the Colorado Education Association’s online professional learning platform, COpilot, has proven educators can soar when given the chance to learn from one another to help every student thrive. With school buildings now closed due to coronavirus, educators have made COpilot the go-to source in Colorado to get up-to-speed on distance learning quickly.
“Teaching is a team experience and educators have always turned to one another for advice and guidance to improve their practice and meet student needs. It’s so much more critical for educators to do that now, and fortunately, we have wonderful technology in place that’s bringing educators together to take on today’s immense challenges with distance learning,” said CEA President Amie Baca-Oehlert.
Featuring courses and lesson plans designed and taught by CEA members, COpilot offers educators resources and support in one convenient place that can be accessed at any time. In response to the coronavirus crisis, CEA has offered special, abbreviated sections of some of the most useful technology classes to help educators who are having to quickly shift their content from the classroom to digital platforms.
Google Classroom is one example of the technology courses taught on COpilot. The free web service simplifies the process of sharing files between teachers and students. Elisabeth Frank, a teacher in the Cherry Creek School District, learned how to use this service to create, distribute and grade assignments in a remote learning environment.
“I am not a tech person at all, and I learned an incredible amount from my COpilot course. Kids have already started to work on assignments and turn them in,” said Frank in her course feedback.“Only because of this class, I am able to grade, comment, and send back work to a student. I am able to use the various functions in Google Classroom because of COpilot. Thank you so much for helping me prepare for remote learning.”
Teacher Becky Roup took the same COpilot course in the rural town of Holly, just miles from the Kansas border.“I didn’t feel 100 percent confident about making a Google Classroom, but I jumped right in with what I learned from my COpilot class. This has proven to be the BEST professional decision I have ever made. Gaining these skills through COpilot helped me to make the remote learning shift for my students more bearable. Thank you for that!”
The response to COpilot’s special course offerings was astounding. In just 48 hours, 287 educators signed up for more than 450 course enrollments. CEA is working through a waiting list to support many more educators who want the training.
CEA broke new ground with COpilot in 2017, becoming the first association of educators in the country to launch a statewide, interactive tool delivering peer-to-peer teaching support. COpilot celebrated eclipsing the 10,000-enrollment milestone this spring.
“I am so proud of our respected teaching experts who are taking the lead even during this pandemic to share their knowledge on COpilot with educators who need quality, relevant professional learning now more than ever,” added Baca-Oehlert.“We are at our best for students when educators step forward to lead the profession and share the wisdom they’ve gained. COpilot’s continued popularity tells us these courses will make a difference for many more educators to impact their students’ success.”
COpilot’s course facilitators earn money for teaching their courses, which can help an educator afford to live in the state with the least competitive teacher pay in the country. COpilot is available to all educators in Colorado. Media wishing to connect with a COpilot participant should contact Mike Wetzel, CEA public relations director, at mwetzel@coloradoea.org or 720-454-5729.
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Feb 1, 2017 | Blog
The Colorado Education Association is breaking new ground in continued professional learning with COpilot, an innovative, flexible online learning platform for teachers and education support professionals. The CEA is the first association of educators in the country to launch a statewide, interactive tool delivering peer-to-peer teaching support.
“We designed COpilot to give Colorado teachers a professional edge to help every student thrive,” said CEA President Kerrie Dallman.“Our school districts are badly underfunded and they’re struggling to provide relevant resources to keep their staffs current on the ever-changing world of classroom practice. We’ve stepped up to fill that void with a new way forward that will revolutionize professional development with new opportunities and allow districts to leverage their greatest resource, their people.
“We’re proving with COpilot that the most effective methods to improve teaching do not have to come from an expensive consultant or the latest ‚Äòbig idea in education’ from the corporate world,” Dallman added.“We have phenomenal teaching talent we can tap right here in Colorado. Highly experienced teachers have stepped forward across the state. They are ready to lead and they are taking charge of their profession on COpilot.”
** Listen to Kerrie Dallman’s CEA Leader Podcast on COpilot HERE **
COpilot features courses and lesson plans designed and taught by CEA members, and offers resources and supports all in one convenient place educators can access any time.
** Watch CEA’s COpilot promotional video HERE **
“COpilot gives me a tremendous opportunity to work with fellow educators throughout Colorado and pass on ideas and strategies they can use in the classroom to engage their students,” said Scot Kaye, an 18-year teacher in the Cherry Creek School District. Kaye, a member of Cherry Creek Education Association, has facilitated COpilot courses on the Finnish education system and excessive testing.
“Teaching my own students and watching them grow is very rewarding, but COpilot lifts my teaching to a greater level because I can now positively impact hundreds of teachers and thousands of their students far beyond my classroom,” Kaye explained.“Teachers teaching teachers is the right work for my Association to do and I’m excited to be among the first teachers in the country to share my knowledge with colleagues on such a dynamic learning platform.”
Course facilitators earn money for teaching their courses, and teachers completing courses can earn graduate credit from Adams State University and accrue professional development hours for license renewal.
“I was very impressed by the ease of communicating with the instructor and classmates in COpilot, and the website is phenomenal,” said Lisa Chavez, a third-year teacher in the Lamar RE-2 School District. Chavez, a member of Lamar Education Association, recently completed a COpilot course on intentional interruption and understanding professional development verses professional learning.
“I teach in a small town, and while my district does what it can to help us improve, rural teachers need to take advantage of every opportunity to keep current on the best education practices,” observed Chavez.“The teacher instructors in COpilot live in my world and they’ve given me a greater awareness on how my students learn and what I can do to help them fulfill their potential. Having this wealth of outside expertise literally at my fingertips is a wonderful benefit for me and my students, and I can’t wait to take another course.”
COpilot is available to all educators in Colorado regardless of membership with CEA, though members receive the lowest priced courses. Learn more about COpilot by contacting Casey Kilpatrick, CEA’s director of learning services.
The Colorado Education Association is breaking new ground in continued professional learning with