When I started Teach For America, I wasn't trying to come up with an idea that would change the world. I was trying to solve a problem much closer to home: I was a senior in college, and I had no idea what I was going to do with my life!
I was on the board of Teach for America. And we transformed a failed public school system in the City of New Orleans, probably the most corrupted and failed system in the country.
A core part of Teach For America's mission has always been affecting positive change in the traditional public school system.
Teach For America was built on the idea that our best hope of reaching 'One Day' is to have thousands of alumni use their diverse experiences and ideas to effect change from inside and outside the education system.
Teach For America is working hard to be one significant source of the leadership we need.
Teach For America provides one of the most critical pipelines for bringing new talent into public education.
As a former board member for Teach For America, I understand that every child has the ability to learn and that, no matter their circumstances at home, we have a duty and a responsibility to educate them and to do it well.
I think the way to understand Teach for America is as a leadership development program.
When you think of the typical Teach For America corps member, soldiers and ex-bankers are probably not the people who come to mind. In fact, there is no such thing as a typical corps member. They can't be neatly pigeonholed or painted with a broad brush.
It's Teach For America's responsibility to ensure that all alumni know their voices are heard and valued, and to surface the range of opinion they represent.
Our experience at Teach For America has been that the more people understand educational inequity, the more they want to do something about it.
I have fought to protect those benefits that ensure better salaries for teachers across the Nation such as grants to pay off student loans and funding for Teach for America. Still, we must all do more to show our continued appreciation for our Nation's leading role models.
Teach for America has helped us understand what works and what doesn't.
I think Teach for America has suffered from the fact that I did not teach, in a major way. I also think if I had taught, I wouldn't have started Teach for America.
