Minnetonka once again led the state in the number of teachers who gained certification in 2013 from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.

The school district added five teachers to the ranks of those who have passed the rigorous national certification process, the same number as in 2012. The district has had 33 teachers certified over the years, with 30 currently on staff. That's the third-highest in the state; Minnetonka is breathing down the neck of St. Paul (34) and also gaining on Minneapolis (49), the state leader.

Minnesota added 15 board-certified teachers in 2013, the most since at least 2009. All came from the metro area, unlike 2012 when two teachers in outstate Minnesota were certified. Minnesota once added dozens of board-certified teachers annually, but state support has fallen off. Minnetonka has led in certifications recently because it offers a three-year program of support for teachers who are interested in gaining certification

Minneapolis and Roseville each added three board teachers in 2013, followed by Edina with two, and Spring Lake Park and St. Paul with one each.

The newly certified Minnesota teachers, their districts and specialties are:

Minnetonka -- Sonia Labs, English language arts/adolescence and young adulthood; Timothy Sauer, mathematics/adolescence and young adulthood; Heidi Schuchman, literacy reading-language arts/early and middle childhood; Heather Stowman, exceptional needs specialist/early childhood through young adulthood; and Merlin Zimmerman, English language arts/adolescence and young adulthood.

Minneapolis -- James Kindle and Kaitlin Lindsey, English as a new language,/early and middle childhood; and Heather McKerrow, English as a new language/early adolescence through young adulthood.

Roseville -- Jill Bue and Lori Oberstar, mathematics/early adolescence, and Melissa Reid, exceptional needs specialist/early childhood through young adult.

Edina -- Geneva Fitzsimonds, music/early adolescence through young adulthood; and Claris Hanssen, world languages/early adolescence through young adulthood.

St. Paul -- Erica Schatzlein, English as a new language/early and middle childhood.

Spring Lake Park -- Kristi McCarthy, social studies-history/early adolescence.