I am thrilled to be able to support Teach For America corps members and the work they do. . . . They embody extraordinary talent and the will to take no excuses in their mission to make our nation a better nation. They are impact players.
- Joel Klein, New York City Schools Chancellor
This year, a corps of nearly 1,000 of the nation’s most promising future leaders are teaching in our city’s lowest-income classrooms as a part of Teach For America • New York City. They are working to ensure their students have the educational opportunities they deserve. Our alumni are a leadership force, working from within education and every professional sector to effect broader change. Together they are helping us make educational equity a reality in New York City. Learn about living and teaching in New York City.
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This school year, a corps of 1,000 of the nation’s most promising future leaders is teaching in our city’s lowest-income classrooms as a part of Teach For America • New York City. They are working to ensure their students have the educational opportunities they deserve. Samuel Ronfard is one example of the tremendous difference our corps members are making.
Samuel Ronfard (New York City Corps '06) |
Samuel Ronfard teaches sixth grade special needs students at I.S. 265 in Brooklyn. During the first few weeks of school, Samuel discovered that all of his students were at least three years behind in both reading and math. Samuel quickly launched into differentiated and small group instruction. He also held weekly class meetings to ensure his students were celebrating successes and tackling challenges as a team. He found donors to create his classroom library, held a student poetry celebration to grow his students’ confidence, and built strong relationships with parents and families. Within a single year, Samuel’s students grew one and a half years in reading and math on average and gained great confidence in their ability to succeed.
New York City: Our Impact on Students and Schools Today
| School Year | Corps Members | Students Reached |
|---|---|---|
| 2005-06 | 786 | 47,000 |
| 2006-07 | 975 | 58,500 |
| 2007-08 | 1,000 | 60,000 |
Principal Satisfaction
*"Teach For America 2007 National Principal Survey,” Policy Studies Associates, July 2007.
Impact on Student
Achievement
According to a highly regarded study by Mathematica Policy Research, corps members outpaced fully certified and veteran teachers in their schools in moving their students ahead academically. Read national results.
Student Profile
Approximately 83.5 percent of students taught by corps members are eligible to receive free or reduced price lunch.
| Ethnicity | % of Students Taught by Corps Members |
|---|---|
| African-American | 40% |
| Latino/Hispanic | 55% |
| Asian-American | 3% |
| Caucasian | 2% |
New York City: Corps Member Placement
| School Year | Corps Members | Students Reached |
|---|---|---|
| Early Childhood | 42 | 4% |
| Bilingual Elementary | 44 | 4% |
| Elementary | 318 | 32% |
| English | 120 | 12% |
| ESL | 66 | 7% |
| Mathematics | 97 | 10% |
| Science | 84 | 8% |
| Social Studies | 80 | 8% |
| Special Education | 148 | 15% |
| Total | 999 | 100% |
*Percentages are rounded and may not add up to 100 percent.
Characteristics of the 2007 Corps
| Corps Profile | Top alma maters by market share* |
|---|---|
| Average GPA: 3.6 | Duke University, Spelman College, Scripps College, University of Chicago: 10% |
| Average SAT: 1321 | University of Notre Dame: 9% |
| Held leadership roles on campus: 95% | Princeton University: 8% |
| People of color: 28% | Yale University: 7% |
*Percentage of senior classes who applied to Teach For America.
Fostering Alumni Leadership for Systemic Change
As the number of corps members grows, so does our alumni base. By 2010, we will have over 3,000 Teach For America • New York City alumni pursuing professional careers and impacting educational reform from every sector throughout the country.
David Levin (New York City Corps '92) |
John White (New York City Corps '99) |
David Levin and John White are two alumni working toward our mission. David co-founded KIPP, a network of high-performing charter schools that serve children from low-income communities throughout the United States, including four schools in New York City which are led by Teach For America alumni. John serves as Chief Operating Officer in the Office of Portfolio Development at the New York City Department of Education. He is responsible for the department’s analysis of academic need and facilities supply, the subsequent allocation of space to schools and programs that serve 1.2 million children, and the community relations work necessary to inform the public of the options available to the city’s children and families.
Growing Our Impact: Funding Needs
Each additional recruit is another dedicated teacher for children growing up in low-income communities in New York City, and another talented leader with the insight and commitment necessary to sustain the reform efforts underway, which is critical to the ongoing vitality of our region. We must raise 20 million dollars a year through 2010 in order to support our corps of 1,000 teachers.
We are grateful to have many supporters who generously contribute to our movement in New York City. The foundations, corporations and individuals listed below have made it possible for Teach For America to continue to recruit, select, train, and support teachers who are working to eliminate educational inequity in our city.
| Advisory Board |
|---|
| Charles T. Harris III (Co-Chair) Executive Partner SeaChange Capital Partners |
| Robert W. Scully (Co-Chair) Co-President Morgan Stanley |
| Roger S. Aaron Partner Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP |
| Joseph Amato Managing Director Co-Head Global Asset Management, Lehman Brothers |
| Victoria Elenowitz Chair of the Board of Directors Southampton Bath & Tennis Club |
| Edes P. Gilbert President & Consultant Resource Group 175 |
| Sue Lehmann Management Consultant |
| Scott Nuttall Partner Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. |
| Nancy Peretsman Executive Vice President & Managing Director Allen & Company, LLC |
| Larry Robbins Founder, Portfolio Manager, & CEO Glenview Capital Management |
| Howard Schiller Managing Director Goldman, Sachs & Co. |
| Mark Zurack Adjunct Professor Columbia Business School & Cornell University |
To learn more about staff opportunities at Teach For America • New York City or to request any additional information about Teach For America • New York City please contact:
Jemina Bernard
Executive Director
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x435, f 212-279-2663
jemina.bernard@teachforamerica.org
To support Teach For America • New York City with a gift or to request additional information about the annual benefit dinner, please contact:
Meagan Hinchliffe
Director, Development Operations & Planning
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x168, f 212-279-2663
meagan.hinchliffe@teachforamerica.org
To learn more about Teach For America • New York City, please contact:
Peter Rider
Vice President, Talent & Operations
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x429, f 212-279-2663
peter.rider@teachforamerica.org
To learn more about corps member placement and certification, alumni affairs, and school leadership, please contact:
Jessica Cordova Kramer
Vice President, District Strategy & Alumni Affairs
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x430, f 212-279-2663
jessica.cordova@teachforamerica.org
To learn more about corps member training and support, please contact:
Karn Engelsgjerd
Vice President, Program
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x201, f 212-279-2663
karn.engelsgjerd@teachforamerica.org
We are thrilled to have Jemina R. Bernard join the New York City Team as Executive Director. A native of the South Bronx, Jemina oversees the New York City region, Teach For America’s largest with 1,000 corps members who collectively reach 60,000 students in more than 300 public schools per year. She joined Teach For America in 2007 after working for four years in the New York City Department of Education, where she was most recently Chief Operating Officer for the Office of New Schools. In that and other leadership roles in the department, she worked closely with Chancellor Joel I. Klein and Deputy Mayor Dennis M. Walcott. She also managed a cross-functional team that closed six poor-performing high schools and replaced them with new schools, oversaw a parent-support staff of more than 1,300 people, and managed the launch of 34 Community and Citywide Education Councils. Jemina has also worked at Deloitte Consulting and the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation. An alumna of Prep for Prep, she earned a B.A. from Yale University and an M.B.A from the Columbia Business School.
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