Former students discuss tenure with Teach for America
Alumni questioned how much of an effect they had on their students.
Published Feb. 20, 2009
More college graduates are finding themselves in an unlikely and sometimes uncomfortable position -- at the front of a high school classroom, working as a member of the Teach for America Corps.
"It was an entirely new experience," said Kathryn Danis, an alumna of the program and a 2001 Indiana University graduate. "And it's definitely not one for everybody. It is physically, mentally and emotionally draining."
Danis, who taught ninth grade English in an Atlanta school from 2002-2004, is part of the growing network of active corps members and alumni, now almost 20,000 strong.
Teach for America focuses on addressing educational inequity in 29 urban and rural areas across the country. The program estimates its efforts impact approximately 400,000 students annually.
Corps volunteers commit two years to teaching in low-income communities across the country. Alumni are eligible for transitional grants and loans, as well as education awards and additional financial resources.
Danis said she was shocked by the challenges she was confronted with, including students performing below grade level, chronic lack of supplies and rampant behavioral problems.
"There were bright spots, certainly," Danis said. "There were students in every class I taught who were really interested in learning. But I spent a lot of time managing my classroom, and I missed out on a lot of time I feel I could have been doing what I came to do."
Jeremy Brown, a 2003 University of Texas graduate, taught math in Houston from 2005-2007. He said he faced difficulties, but felt more prepared than some corps members because of his own experiences.
Brown, who graduated from an under-funded, overcrowded inner-city school in Detroit, was one of the few students in his class to go on to a four-year university.
"It was still rather discouraging, to see so many things unchanged in the 10 years or so since I'd been there myself," he said. "Moreover, I knew how things would probably turn out for a lot of these students. I know how hard the life is."
Although Brown was at times disheartened by his experience, he decided to continue on as a public school teacher and is now working in a middle school near Dallas.
According to a news release from Teach for America, the most recent alumni survey shows that two-thirds of Teach for America alumni are still studying or working in education, though others do decide that the classroom is not for them and go on to pursue other careers.
In 2005, the organization launched an ambitious five-year growth plan. The program hopes to expand into at least 33 regions by 2010, with at least 8,000 corps members. According to the news release, growth seems to be right on track.
In May 2008, the program announced a record number of applicants -- 24,718 -- and a record number of newly placed teachers, more than 3,700. The program also announced its new sites in Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Fla., and Kansas City.
Beth Wallace, an active corps member who graduated from UMKC this spring, said she is hopeful about the impact she may have on her students. Wallace, who teaches social studies in Houston, said she plans on pursuing a career in teaching, though she is most interested in work at an independent school.
"These kids have it really rough," Wallace said. "And unfortunately, a lot of them aren't being taught to embrace the opportunities that could make their situation better."
Alumni said they worry if they had an affect on their students.
"I'm not sure, honestly, that if I had the option, I would do it again," Danis said, who recently graduated from law school. "I had basically no life for two years, I was name-called and ignored. There were moments for sure, when it seemed like I was making some progress, but, how can I know if it stuck?"
