Thanks, Zildjian and isakten. You pointed me in the right direction. What I ended up doing was just placing a text form field (for the Effective Date) and then the needed signature fields. After everyone has signed, I can input the Effective Date and save the document and I don't have to sign it myself or apply any kind of certification. I just have to remember to put the text form field in before I route the documents. This is the Correct Answer, at least for my situation.
Thanks again!