For those interested in implementing RTP as their school discipline process and who may want to visit a school that has been certified, or may have heard someone speak who claims to be certified in RTP, it is necessary to understand what certification means.
In Discipline For Home And School, Book Two, Chapter Eight, I have outlined the criteria for what we have found to be necessary for a school to have a successful RTP program. When a school is certified, we also certify the administrator of the process and the RTC teacher. If either one leaves the school, the school loses its certification until it has been re-certified with new personnel in the key roles.
For administrators to be certified, they should reflect what is in Book Two mentioned above. The purpose in certifying the administrator was to make sure the school maintained the integrity of the program. In addition, those who visited her school could be assured that the administrator had a good grasp of the program and an understanding of PCT.
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When the administrator speaks, she should be able to talk not only about what she has done, but how effective the program has been. In order to maintain certification, administrators, along with trainers and evaluators, are required to attend at least one 6-hour school training session with Ed Ford and George Venetis a year.
As an alternative, they could attend one of Ed Ford's two-day conferences that are held once or twice a year in Phoenix. These are announced under What's News on the RTP web page.
When an administrator is certified, it does not mean they are recognized as qualified to do training or give workshops at other schools or at conferences. Their certification does not extend to those areas. Their certification means they can administer RTP in a school, and obviously could talk about what they have done, their experiences, and the relevant school statistics. The trainer, on the other hand, having worked with many schools, and having proven herself knowledgeable in PCT and the various applications of RTP at the many levels of education, is certainly qualified to teach and train.
Because a person is certified, especially those certified as an administrator, those that hear him may believe that everything he says reflects RTP and/or PCT, when, in fact, it may not. He may have changed some of his ideas about how things should be. He may have overlaid the RTP program with some other styles of dealing with students. He may have never really understood some aspects of the program. Or, if someone decides to venture out on his own, and give unauthorized workshops or training, he could very well be viewed as an authority on RTP and PCT by virtue of his having RTP certification.
That is why we require some kind of yearly updating in order for a person to maintain their certification. This is to protect the quality of delivery and to assure those seeking knowledge and understanding of RTP and PCT that they are learning from someone who is a part of our organization and reflects it's standards.
If someone who is certified decides to venture out on his own or create his own organization or if someone decides to go beyond what his certification recognizes he can do, for whatever reason, and not work as a team member within Responsible Thinking Process, Inc., his certification will be withdrawn. He would just be taking advantage of and trying to profit from all the hard work to which all of us have contributed in the development of RTP. Obviously, I can't stop this from happening but I can no longer recognize him as certified or as a part of our organization. A good way to find out if someone is certified or a school is certified, is to check the list below. It is constantly being updated.
It is critical that all certified people work through our organization so that schools get the kind of training that will assure them a successful implementation of RTP. This means that all certified people should notify Responsible Thinking Process, Inc. (or one of those listed under RTP Contact Information) of any interest in RTP shown by any school, individual, or institution. This includes anyone who wants to learn about RTP, has expressed an interest for an introductory or overview presentation, requested any information, or wants initial or ongoing training in the process.
Nothing is more tragic than to learn of a school that claims RTP "doesn't work" only to find out that they have either not had any training, or that training was done by someone who hadn't the competence. If a person doesn't want to work as a team member within our organization, then that's his choice. He will also lose his certification.
The following schools are accredited by the Responsible Thinking Process ®, Incorporated
(as of September 2005).
Evart High School
Evart, Michigan
Al Kullman, RTP Administrator
Al Kullman, RTP Trainer
Evart Middle School
Evart, Michigan
Sue Lenahan, RTP Administrator
Marilyn Allen-Logic, RTC Teacher
Evart Elementary School
Evart, Michigan
Sandy Wallace, RTC teacher
Carol Phelps, Principal, RTP Administrator
Sahuaro Elementary School
Washington Elementary School District
Phoenix, Arizona
Dave Anderson, Principal
Kym Wilson, Student Services Specialist
Renita Steinmann, RTC Teacher
Annette Munster, RTC Teacher
Eagle Elementary School
600 S. 1st St.
Eagle, NE 68347
Frank Hoefling, Principal, RTP Trainer
Kellie Johnson, Counselor
Hoefling and Johnson alternate as RTC teachers
More information on formal accreditation of individuals and schools can be obtained by
contacting Ed Ford, president of the RTP, Inc.