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Working Together

Letter from One Day editor in chief, Ting Yu

Dear Fellow Alumni,

Before I joined Teach For America in 2003, I had lived and worked as a journalist in Manhattan for six years and never once set foot in the Bronx. While I know it seems strange that I could have overlooked one of New York City's five boroughs, it was, in fact, my reality and that of many people I knew. The Bronx was little more than a distant stop on the 6 train.

That changed when I became a corps member, of course, and I spent the next two years of my life teaching seventh and eighth grade English and social studies in the South Bronx to the most amazing students I have ever met. While their academic progress was inspiring, it was the day I watched Giovanni, the shyest boy in my class, perform-with defiance and eloquence-his poem, "Homeless," to a wildly cheering crowd in the finals of a Bronx-wide poetry slam, that my belief about what is possible for kids in our poorest communities was forever changed.

Like many of you, I knew that I wanted to continue working toward Teach For America's mission of educational equity beyond my corps commitment. So when the opportunity arose to lead our new alumni magazine, I jumped at the chance. As Wendy wrote in the last issue, we conceived of One Day as a means of fostering a stronger network and advancing our collective thinking.

With that in mind, we redesigned the magazine with new features to be more readable and relevant to you, and naturally we expect the magazine to evolve and develop its identity over time. However, as we thought hard about what more we could do to maximize One Day's effectiveness as a forum, we realized that the answer was you, our alumni readers. Above all, the magazine exists as a forum for your voices, your perspectives, and your stories, so please write in (onedayletters@teachforamerica.org), tell us what you think, and let us know what issues are important to you.

This edition of One Day sketches out the landscape of early childhood education and seeks to spark dialogue about the role of pre-K in closing the achievement gap. We also highlight several alumni whose work demonstrates vividly the breadth and scope of the alumni movement-from Axel Shalson (L.A. '95), a tech entrepreneur whose software is revolutionizing the way educators in California approach student data, to Willis and Sonya Walker (both Metro D.C. '95), who are leading the renaissance of one of Atlanta's historic African-American neighborhoods one cup of coffee at a time.

We hope these issues and stories resonate with you and inspire each of you to engage and take action in your own way. I look forward to getting to know more of you and sharing your remarkable stories in the years to come.

Warm Regards,

Ting Yu
New York City '03
Editor in Chief