PETER JENNINGS AWARD HONORS TOM TORKELSON, JOANN GONZALES, AND JEREMY BEARD OF IDEA PUBLIC SCHOOLS

IDEA Leaders to Receive Teach For America’s Prestigious Alumni Award, Recognizing Significant Impact in Expanding Educational Opportunity

NEW YORK, May 13, 2009—Teach For America announced today that IDEA Public Schools’ Tom Torkelson, JoAnn Gonzales, and Jeremy Beard will receive this year’s Peter Jennings Award for Civic Leadership. Named in tribute to the late journalist and longtime Teach For America supporter, the award is presented annually to Teach For America alumni who have significantly impacted an issue of critical importance to closing the academic achievement gap. The award presentation will take place tonight during the Teach For America Annual New York City Benefit Dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria.

Teach For America is the national corps of top college graduates who commit to teach for at least two years in high-need public schools and become lifelong advocates for educational equity. Torkelson and Gonzales joined Teach For America’s Rio Grande Valley corps in 1997, and the following year, founded the after-school program that grew into IDEA Public Schools. Today, as IDEA’s CEO and COO respectively, Torkelson and Gonzales lead a network of 10 schools across the Rio Grande Valley, where 76 percent of their 5,000 students are eligible for the federal lunch program. IDEA students’ achievement on all areas of the 2008 Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) exceeded the state averages.

Beard, who joined Teach For America’s Los Angeles corps in 1995, is the principal of IDEA’s flagship school, IDEA Academy and College Preparatory, in Donna, Texas. The school ranks among the nation’s top 20 high schools, according to U.S. News & World Report. It is one of only two schools in the top 20 serving a population with at least 74 percent low-income students.

"It's a privilege to be able to recognize these incredibly innovative educators, who are creating so much opportunity where there has been so little," said Kayce Freed Jennings, who will present the award to the recipients. "The selection committee found it particularly impressive that in a community where only 11 percent of the adults are college graduates, 100 percent of IDEA's graduates are currently enrolled in four-year colleges."

In addition to achieving a 100-percent college-acceptance rate for its second straight year, IDEA College Prep marked several new milestones in the past year. The state of Texas recognized it as the top school in the Rio Grande Valley and the No. 2 school in the state. In the U.S. News rankings, it placed as the No. 6 charter school in the nation. It also acquired International Baccalaureate authorization, making it one of very few IB-authorized schools in the world serving primarily low-income students.

“While we often focus on the extent of the problems in American education, the achievements of Tom, JoAnn, and Jeremy show that these problems are solvable,” said Wendy Kopp, founder and CEO of Teach For America. “By pursuing high standards and college preparation for students who live in some of our nation’s poorest counties, IDEA schools are demonstrating that all children can achieve at the highest levels when they are given the opportunity to do so.”

“JoAnn, Jeremy, and I are deeply honored by this recognition of our efforts to continue the impact we had as Teach For America corps members changing educational outcomes for students in the Rio Grande Valley,” Torkelson said. “Seeing all of our graduates head off to four-year colleges is rewarding in itself, but by sharing their achievements more broadly, we can help to transform public perception of what is possible with education in low-income communities.”

Established in 2007, the Peter Jennings Award has quickly developed a reputation for recognizing breakthrough talent in the education community. The past recipients are D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee (Baltimore Corps ’92) and New York City Schools District 79 Superintendent Cami Anderson (Los Angeles Corps ’93). This is the first year that multiple honorees will receive the award, and Torkelson, Gonzales, and Beard will share the $10,000 prize.

About the Peter Jennings Award
The Peter Jennings Award for Civic Leadership celebrates a Teach For America alumnus/a who in the past year has exerted great leadership to expand educational opportunity. The award is named after journalist and ABC News anchor Peter Jennings, a longtime supporter of Teach For America who spoke powerfully about the organization’s work on the front lines of this challenge to make America better. He understood deeply the long-term impact of Teach For America’s work and embodied the values and commitment that the organization seeks to foster among its corps members and alumni. Award nominations are submitted by Teach For America alumni, staff, and others in the arena of education and social reform.

About Teach For America
Teach For America is the national corps of outstanding recent college graduates who commit to teach for at least two years in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong leaders in expanding educational opportunity. This year, 6,200 corps members are teaching in over 1,600 schools in 29 regions across the country while more than 14,000 Teach For America alumni continue working from inside and outside the field of education for the fundamental changes necessary to ensure educational excellence and equity. For more information, visit www.teachforamerica.org.