Ethical, practical National Board support for every stage of your journey

National Board Certification can feel overwhelming. Puente helps you understand the process, organize your thinking, and move forward with clarity and confidence.

Choose Your Next Step

I’m Exploring National Board Certification

Start with Inside the National Boards: Start Strong, a free live workshop that explains the certification process, the four components, and how to begin.

I’m Working on Component 3

Join the live C3 Coaching Cohort for structured instruction, practical tools, ethical coaching, and dedicated time to clarify your questions.

I’m Looking for Other National Board Support

Learn about future Puente workshops, coaching cohorts, and resources for National Board candidates.

Why Work With Rachel?

I’m Rachel Howard de Cuevas, M.Ed., NBCT (ENL-EMC)—an experienced multilingual educator, National Board coach, and National Board Assessor for Component 3 in English as a New Language.

I bring more than two decades of classroom experience to this work. I understand the demands candidates are balancing and provide clear, organized support that helps teachers understand what the National Board process is asking them to demonstrate.

My coaching is grounded in National Board standards, public resources, and ethical candidate-support practices.

What Ethical Coaching Means

Your portfolio must represent your teaching, your students, your decisions, and your authentic evidence. My role is to teach the National Board process, ask questions that deepen your thinking, and help you understand the standards and public resources.

I do not read or edit candidate commentary, watch candidate videos, create evidence, provide entries to copy, or estimate scores. These boundaries protect the integrity of your candidacy and ensure that your submission remains fully your own.

What Candidates Say:

“The NBC directions can feel vague and overwhelming, and Rachel breaks them down in a meaningful way.”

— Heather Williams, Early Middle Childhood Generalist Candidate and first-grade teacher

“Rachel helped me narrow my focus for C4 and truly think through the level of impact of my professional need and student need.”

— National Board Candidate

Ready to Take Your Next Step?

Wherever you are in the National Board process, Puente can help you understand your options and choose a clear path forward.

Return to the options above to explore the free workshop, the C3 Coaching Cohort, or future Puente support.