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Head of professional teaching standards board dies

Ronald Thorpe, CEO of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, died from lung cancer at his home in Norwalk, Conn., July 1. He was 63. Thorpe led the Arlington, Va.-based NBPTS since 2011. The organization's executive committee credited him with reinvigorating the group by pushing to make NBPTS certification the norm for every teacher. "Visionary is an overused word, but in Ron's case, it's the right one," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who presented Thorpe with a lifetime achievement award in March. "He's deepened the understanding of the teaching profession for the nation and the world." Thorpe's career in education began in 1974 when he… Read More