A beloved example-setter on why this matters for leaders in edtech.
GUEST COLUMN | by Mike Daugherty
MOMENTBLOOM
In today’s fast moving K-12 tech landscape, district CTOs carry enormous responsibility: setting vision, managing infrastructure, ensuring equity all while managing ever tighter budgets. The Certified Educational Technology Leader (CETL) credential from CoSN isn’t just a resume booster for CTOs. It’s proof you’ve mastered the skills it takes that drive real, sustainable transformation in your district. And while CTOs are the most obvious beneficiaries, tech coaches, support technicians and anyone with at least four years of hands on K-12 edtech experience also qualify to earn and leverage this rigorous certification.
‘…proof you’ve mastered the skills it takes that drive real, sustainable transformation in your district.’
What the CETL Covers
Built by the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN), the CETL is anchored in the Framework of Essential Skills of the K-12 CTO. The framework covers areas such as leadership, strategic planning, instructional focus and technology management. This is not a technical exam with questions around network protocols and server configurations. The exam is designed to test your ability to understand the technical landscape then strategically lead your district to a place where technology is having a positive, meaningful impact on the classroom. Earning your CETL demonstrates that you not only grasp each area of the framework in isolation but can weave them together into a coherent strategy that elevates teaching and learning.
Why CETL Elevates Your Leadership
Obtaining the CETL credential gives you immediate credibility because it signals you’ve been tested against nationally recognized standards. The framework helps ensure your technology plan isn’t a wish list but a data driven roadmap tied to learning outcomes, professional development, and building a safe, efficient environment for students and staff. Beyond credentials, joining the CETL community connects you with a network of peers (CTOs, coaches and technicians) who share best practices and new ideas, troubleshoot challenges in real time and help each other stay ahead of emerging trends.
Real World Impact and Benefits
District leaders frequently report that the CETL drives both personal and organizational growth. On the career side, certified professionals move more quickly into senior roles and command higher salaries. School districts nationwide are advertising positions that list ‘CETL preferred’ under experience. Earning this certification has also helped leaders become members of the Superintendent’s cabinet.
At the district level, the CETL means you’re armed with a strategic planning framework you can apply to every district initiative from infrastructure roll outs and professional learning to digital citizenship and equity efforts, ensuring every decision aligns with your long term vision. The emphasis on equity and access provides clear guardrails for closing digital divides, while the focus on professional development ensures staff can support and sustain new initiatives.
Steps to Certification
To get started, any K-12 edtech leader with four or more years of K-12 edtech experience and a bachelor’s degree can apply. Whether you are a CTO, tech coach, technician or instructional technologist, you are eligible. Those individuals without a bachelor’s degree and seven years of K-12 edtech experience are also eligible to apply. You submit a resume and experience log, pay the exam fee (with discounted CoSN member rates), and you’ll be registered for the exam. The exam consists of 100 multiple choice questions. Candidates have two hours to work through questions that cover all aspects of the Framework of Essential Skills.
Joining a study group is the best way to prepare for the exam. In my experience, the added benefit of a study group is the conversations with other leaders. You get to hear their thoughts and ideas on the different topics and have a discussion. Start by connecting with the CoSN chapter in your state. Many states offer yearly CETL study groups. Meeting routinely, they cover key topics, tackle practice questions, and sharpen your understanding of the exam expectations.
If your state does not offer a study group or does not have a CoSN chapter, you could consider joining one through the EdTech Leaders Alliance or from CoSN national. Once certified, you maintain your credential by earning 80 continuing education units over three years through webinars, conferences, published articles or local professional development.
A Catalyst for Lasting Change
For CTOs steering district wide strategy or tech coaches and technicians ready to step into leadership roles, the CETL certification delivers both a research backed framework and a stamp of credibility. In a time where technology impacts so many aspects of teaching and learning, earning your CETL isn’t just a career move: it’s a catalyst for building more equitable, effective, future ready schools.
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Mike Daugherty is Assistant Superintendent of Innovation, Technology, and Communications for Chagrin Falls Exempted Village Schools in Ohio. CoSN honored Mike with the 2025 Volunteer of the Year Award at the CoSN conference in Seattle as “a tireless volunteer and an invaluable leader in Ohio’s educational technology community. During the pandemic, he served as Chair of the Ohio CoSN chapter and extended his term an extra year to support the group during a critical time. One of his most impactful contributions has been the creation and leadership of a highly successful CETL® study group. What began under his leadership during his time as Chair has grown into an annual fall cohort that meets weekly through the end of the year, guiding participants through the CETL® framework. Thanks to Mike’s dedication, Ohio now has around 20 new CETLs® each year — more than any other state.” Connect with Mike on LinkedIn.
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