National Event to Raise Awareness of Educational Inequity Brings Duval County Public Schools Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dannals, Jacksonville Jaguars Defensive Tackle Atiyyah Ellison and Other Leaders into Local Schools as Guest Teachers
For Immediate Release
Contact: Emily Del Pino | Teach For America
615-242-6263 x2612 | emily.delpino@teachforamerica.org
JACKSONVILLE, March 29, 2010—Leaders from across the city will serve as guest teachers during Teach For America Week, to be held March 29-April 2. Confirmed participants include: Gary Chartrand, executive chairman of Acosta Sales and Marketing; Duval County Public Schools Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dannals; John Rood, chairman of Vestcor Companies and former Ambassador to the Bahamas; Connie Smith, community affairs manager at Wachovia, a Wells Fargo company; and Atiyyah Ellison, defensive tackle for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Teach For America Week draws community leaders nationwide to support educational excellence for all children. These volunteers will visit the classrooms of Teach For America teachers, also known as corps members, and teach lessons based on their experience in business, politics, and beyond. An annual event since 1997, Teach For America Week will take place in 30 regions across the country in 2010.
“We’re excited about the broad range of leaders participating in Teach For America Week this year,” said Crystal Jones, executive director of Teach For America in Jacksonville. “By sharing their expertise in classrooms across the region, these accomplished individuals will make a lasting impression on hundreds of students and help to focus attention on the importance of providing all children with the educational opportunities they deserve.”
Teach For America is the national corps of top recent college graduates who commit to teach for two years in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong leaders in the movement to expand educational opportunity. Teach For America’s network includes 7,300 corps members teaching in 35 regions and a national force of 17,000 alumni at the forefront of efforts to end educational inequity.
This year in Jacksonville, more than 95 Teach For America corps members are reaching 6,000 students in underserved schools while more than 200 alumni in Florida are working from every sector to level the playing field for students and families in low-income communities.
Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dananls will teach in Dorian George and Christa Thomas’s class at Sadie Tillis Elementary School on Monday, March 29. George graduated from Florida State University and is in his second year of teaching. Thomas is also a second-year Tech For America corps member and is a graduate of Spelman College.
“I’m looking forward to participating as a guest teacher during Teach For America Week and working with the class on March 29,” said Superintendent Ed Pratt-Dannals. “We pursued a partnership with Teach For America for years and were thrilled to have been selected two years ago and currently have over 100 corps members teaching in high need schools. It’s inspiring to see up-close the real and lasting impact of Teach For America teachers and alumni in our schools and communities."
A growing body of rigorous research demonstrates the effectiveness of Teach For America corps members as classroom teachers. A 2008 Urban Institute study updated last year found that corps members have a positive effect on student achievement relative to other teachers, including experienced teachers, traditionally prepared teachers, and those fully certified in their field. An earlier study by Mathematica Policy Research found that students of corps members make 10 percent more progress in a year in math than is typically expected and slightly exceed the normal expectation for progress in reading.
Schedule for confirmed guest teachers:
Monday, March 29
Connie Smith, Community Affairs Manager, Wachovia, A Wells Fargo Company
Ribault Middle School, 8:30-9:30AM
Ed Pratt-Dannals, Superintendent, Duval County Public Schools
Sadie Tillis Elementary School, 10:00-11:00AM
Atiyyah Ellison, Defensive Tackle, Jacksonville Jaguars
Justina Road Elementary School, 11:30AM-12:30PM
Tuesday, March 30
John Rood, Chairman, The Vestcor Companies
Carter G. Woodson Elementary, 9:00-10:00AM
Gary Chartrand, Executive Chairman, Acosta Sales and Marketing
Ribault Middle School, 11:30AM-12:30PM
About Teach For America and Teach For America Week
Teach For America is the national corps of outstanding recent college graduates who commit to teach for two years in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong leaders in expanding educational opportunity. Teach For America Week is the annual, nationwide event in which guest teachers engage students from some of our nation’s lowest-income communities and inspire them to pursue academic success. For more information, visit www.teachforamerica.org.
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