Amgen Fellows program

In 2006, Amgen joined Teach For America as its founding National Math and Science Partner. Each year, 50 math, science, and engineering majors are awarded Amgen Fellowships, which provides each recipient with a $2,000 signing bonus for joining Teach For America. In addition, as part of a special partnership between the Amgen Foundation, DonorsChoose.org, and Teach For America, fellows are eligible to receive funding for valuable student learning materials and innovative math and science classroom projects.

How do I qualify to become an Amgen Fellow?

You are automatically considered for the Amgen Fellowship if you are accepted to the corps and will have a degree in science, mathematics, and/or engineering by the beginning of your summer training institute.

Amgen Fellowships will be offered to accepted applicants who exemplify the characteristics we look for in our corps members: achievement, perseverance, critical thinking, organizational ability, ability to influence and motivate others, respect for low-income communities, and fit with our mission. No separate application is needed. Notification of acceptance into the program will happen prior to the summer training institute.
Learn more

Learn more about some of the 2009 Amgen Fellows

Chris Deal graduated from Iowa State University in May 2008 with a degree in mechanical engineering and minors in Spanish and entrepreneurial studies. As an undergraduate, Chris was involved in several leadership positions including serving as the vice president of the student body and as the Dance Marathon Executive Co-Director, where he helped to raise over $200,000 for the Children’s Hospital of Iowa. Prior to joining Teach For America, Chris went to Uganda through a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship where he has studied in a Master of Science in Renewable Energy program while working on the side as a volunteer teacher and founder of a mosquito nets distribution program for rural students. This fall Chris will be teaching high school general science as a 2009 Kansas City corps member.

Aaron J. Garcia graduated from Harvard University with a B.A. in biochemical sciences with a secondary concentration in visual and environmental studies. Researching vectored diseases carried by mosquitoes in Brazil, Aaron conducted research at the Fundação Oswaldo Cruz in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Additionally, he conducted an ethnographic study for the Ministry of Education in Costa Rica on the use of technology in one-to-one computing classrooms. He founded and served as Vice-President – and subsequently President – for Harvard's Latinos in Health Careers, while he served as director for a community health program in Dorchester, MA, where he arranged community-wide health fairs and awareness programs in high-risk underserved, minority communities. Holding leadership positions for a variety of other public service programs, Aaron also served as an intern for three years in the Office of the President for Harvard University. He will be teaching high school science at IDEA Frontier Academy in Brownsville, TX as a 2009 Rio Grande Valley corps member.

Megan Rourk graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.S. environmental science. Megan was highly active in the University of Michigan's Native American community, serving as co-president of the American Indian Science in Engineering Society, Native American Student Association, and Ann Arbor's Powwow Planning Committee. She also volunteered at Detroit's American Indian Health and Family Services. She will be teaching middle school math as a 2009 New Mexico corps member.

Ilana Somasunderam graduated from Columbia University with a degree in environmental science. She worked with the Double Discovery Center tutoring low-income and first-generation college bound New York City high school students and teaching SAT and New York Regents Exam prep classes. As a proud multiracial woman, Ilana helped to revive Columbia's Hapa Club, serving as president during her senior year. As chair of the Undergraduate Student Committee for the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, she made recommendations to improve the curriculum and organized events to bridge the gap between students, faculty members, and researchers. Before becoming a 2009 Bay Area corps member, Ilana was a Campus Campaign Coordinator with Teach For America for two years. She will be teaching secondary biology in the San Francisco Unified School District.

Erica Svendsen graduated from Case Western Reserve University with degrees in biology and anthropology. As an undergraduate, Erica worked in a research laboratory studying cystic fibrosis. This position gave her the opportunity to attend the 2007 North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference. She also spent a summer working on a drug clinical trial for patients with cystic fibrosis. On her campus, Erica was involved as the programming director for her school’s chapter of the American Medical Student Association, as well as a member of the Mortar Board Honor Society and a Phi Beta Kappa inductee. She also volunteered at Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital and tutored on Saturday mornings at a local church. Erica will be teaching secondary science as a 2009 Connecticut corps member.

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*National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2007 Mathematics Assessment and 2005 Science Assessment.