Teach For America has, in essence, come up with a formula that consistently recruits, trains, and places great teachers where they are needed most. The immediate result is real, measurable, positive outcomes for children.
- Barbara Hyde, President, J.R. Hyde III Foundation
This year, a corps of nearly 100 of the nation’s most promising future leaders are teaching in our city’s lowest-income classrooms as a part of Teach For America • Memphis. 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 Memphis. Learn about living and teaching in Memphis.
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Executive Director |
Recent press releases
Recent press coverage
During the 2007-08 school year, nearly 100 corps members are directly impacting the lives of more than 30,000 students in Memphis. Shelby Rohrer is one example of the tremendous difference our corps members are making.
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Shelby Rohrer (Memphis Corps '06) |
Armed with the knowledge that the benefit of an excellent education will allow all of her students to achieve great things in their lives, Shelby set out to break records and instill in her students a love of learning. On the Algebra I Gateway standardized exams, Shelby's students exceeded the district passing rate by 40 percentage points. 70 percent scored Advanced, and 97 percent passed, while district-wide percentages came in at 20 percent and 51 percent, respectively. Shelby is working to obtain full teaching certification through Teach For America's partnership with the University of Memphis.
Memphis: Our Impact on Students and Schools Today
| School Year | Corps Members | Students Reached |
|---|---|---|
| 2005-06 | opened in fall of 2006 | opened in fall of 2006 |
| 2006-07 | 48 | 4,080 |
| 2007-08 | 89 | 7,565 |
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
Memphis: Corps Member Placement
| Assignment | # of Corps Members | % of Corps |
|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 13 | 15% |
| Science | 12 | 13% |
| Special Education | 11 | 12% |
| ESL | 9 | 10% |
| Social Studies | 12 | 13% |
| English | 11 | 12% |
| Foreign Language | 4 | 5% |
| Elementary | 17 | 19% |
| Total | 89 | 100% |
*Percentages are rounded and may not add up to 100 percent.
Characteristics of the 2008 Corps
| Corps Profile | Top alma maters by market share* |
|---|---|
| Average GPA: 3.6 | Spelman College: 16% |
| Average SAT: 1320 | Morehouse College, Williams College, Yale University: 11% |
| Held leadership roles on campus: 95% | Duke University, Georgetown University, University of Chicago, Wake Forest University, Wesleyan University: 10% |
| People of color: 29% | Amherst College, Harvard University, Haverford University, Notre Dame University, Princeton University, Rice University: 9% |
*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 150 Teach For America • Memphis alumni pursuing professional careers and impacting educational reform from every sector.
Drew Kim (South Louisiana Corps '92) |
Drew Kim is one of the many alumni continuing to work toward our vision of educational equity in Tennessee. Drew is Governor Phil Bredesen’s policy chief and has been instrumental in the implementation of statewide pre-K programs, talent recruitment initiative Teach Tennessee, and alternative licensure programs that allow experienced professionals to bring their knowledge into classrooms.
Growing Our Impact: Funding Needs, 2007-10
Each additional recruit is another dedicated teacher for children growing up in low-income communities in Memphis, 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.
| Year | Corps Size | Revenue Needs |
|---|---|---|
| 2007-08 | 89 | $1.8 million |
| 2008-09 | 96* | $2.2 million* |
| 2009-10 | 100* | $2.5 million* |
* projected |
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We are grateful to have many supporters who generously contribute to our movement in Memphis. 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.
To support Teach For America • Memphis with a gift or to request additional information about our impact or finances, please contact:
Brad Leon, Executive Director
David Burke, Development Manager
One Commerce Square
Suite 1190
Memphis, TN 38103
p: 901.527.7510
brad.leon@teachforamerica.org
david.burke@teachforamerica.org
Brad Leon comes into his role as executive director after four years with Teach For America. In his previous role as a recruitment director, Brad managed recruitment efforts at the University of Chicago, the University of Notre Dame, and the University of Iowa; during his tenure Teach For America’s application numbers at these schools increased by 96 percent. While a teacher of eighth grade language arts and social studies at the New Orleans Free School in New Orleans, Brad’s students excelled academically. In a district where success is not the norm, 98 percent of his students passed the Louisiana Education Assessment Program (LEAP), the state’s high stakes, standardized test. As a result of his efforts, Brad was unanimously selected as the school’s “Teacher of the Year” in 2002. A winner of the Senior-Scholar Athlete Award, Brad graduated with honors from Occidental College in 2000 after participating in both football and baseball where he served as captain in 1999-2000.
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