D.C. Region
Overview
One in every three adults in the District of Columbia is functionally illiterate, and only one in 20 students from Wards 7 and 8 will go to college. Gentrification is changing the composition of the student body and as sharply rising housing costs force the relocation of low income students, largely to Prince George’s County, the need for highly qualified teachers to close the achievement gap continues to grow throughout the D.C. Region.
During the 2009-2010 school year, D.C. Region corps members will serve 19,000 students, almost 20 percent of the student population in the region. The region’s alumni network of more than 1,100 people includes Chancellor Rhee of D.C. Public Schools and six (out of 16) members of her senior leadership; two school board members; over 40 alumni in public service in a variety of federal agencies from Capitol Hill to the Department of Education; 30 principals; and 20 assistant principals, vice principals, or deans.
Life
The D.C. Region is one of most vibrant metropolitan areas in the country and offers a unique and diverse blend of intellectual and social activities. The community is comprised of distinct neighborhoods; corps members primarily reside in Columbia Heights, Capitol Hill, and parts of surrounding Virginia. Those corps members teaching in Prince George’s County find easy access to schools through Capitol Hill. Many of the country’s national treasures and parks including the Smithsonian museums, the national monuments, the White House, and the Library of Congress, are found here and open to the public. The National Mall, an open grassy area where the monuments are located, is home to festivals, movie screenings, patriotic events, and political protests. While the population of the District of Columbia is approximately 550,000, the D.C. Region is home to nearly 5 million people inside the Capital Beltway.
Corps Culture
D.C. Region corps members embrace the responsibility of closing the achievement gap during a time where the student population is changing and reform-minded approaches are having an impact on continued learning and student achievement. Corps members see each other most often during their graduate school courses and actively support each in their relentless pursuit of significant academic gains for their students.
Teach For America staff members play a critical role in professionally developing corps members. Alumni continue their involvement with the corps by volunteering to lead workshops at Professional Development Saturdays, by becoming Content Specialists, by volunteering in corps members’ classrooms, and by becoming mentors to first-year corps members.
As the D.C. Region corps grows in size, more and more communities and social opportunities exist for corps members to find their niche. The corps deeply values the diversity of its members and is committed to understanding how to approach the issues of race and socioeconomic status in ways that maximize the positive impact of our work with students.
Teaching
D.C. Region corps members serve students in District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS), District of Columbia Public Charter Schools, and Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS), mostly within the Beltway. In the past eight years, DCPS has lost about 12 percent of its students per year to a growing charter movement; today about 37percent of students in D.C. attend charter schools. Although parents send their children to charter schools for a variety of reasons, students in these schools face the same challenges as other students in the region, and the importance of closing achievement gap is just as critical.
In 2006, the D.C. Region launched the early childhood pilot, now a national model. DCPS continues to experience a need for highly qualified elementary and secondary teachers and a particular need for early childhood, secondary mathematics and special education teachers. Even as DCPS reduces the number of its teachers, however, there is still a need for corps members and the demand often outpaces what Teach For America is able to provide. D.C. Region corps members have been teaching students in Prince George’s County since 2007, and Teach For America looks forward to continuing its relationship with PGCPS Superintendent Dr. Hite and working with alumni to foster a school leadership force.
See a map of our placement areas.
Certification and Testing
All D.C. Region corps members must take and pass a set of standardized tests before teaching and enroll in a certification program at the start of their two-year commitment.
D.C.
Corps members not previously certified in a state that has certification reciprocity with D.C. will receive provisional certification after passing the PRAXIS exams and enrolling with one of our university partnerships. Corps members take one or two classes per semester during their first and second years of teaching in order to receive standard certification.
Secondary and English as a Second Language (ESL):
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Current University Partner: American University (AU)
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Cost of Certification and Master’s: $11,000.
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By adding a few additional courses, corps members can earn certification and a Master’s in Teaching for approximately $14,000.
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Most corps members use their Americorps award to pay for the majority of their coursework.
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Secondary and ESL corps members have the option of pursuing a Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) at AU by taking additional courses during summer sessions.
Early Childhood Education, Elementary, and Special Education:
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Current University Partner: George Mason University (GMU)
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Cost of Certification and Master’s: $11,000.
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Most corps members use their AmeriCorps award to pay for the majority of their coursework.
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All GMU students should be prepared to pay an upfront fee of $2,200 during the summer before beginning teaching. This fee will be returned to corps members through the GMU financial aid package once all of the necessary paperwork has been submitted.
Prince George’s County
Corps members in Prince George’s County receive a Resident Teacher’s Certificate after passing the PRAXIS exams. As a resident teacher, corps members are required to take reading coursework in the Resident Teacher Program in order to receive standard certification within the second year of teaching. Corps members complete the required reading courses for their content area within the first 18 months of teaching and then must take and pass an additional PRAXIS exam in order to receive the Standard Professional License in the second year of teaching. Prince George’s County corps members have the option of enrolling in the master’s program at either American University or George Mason University although it is not required for certification.
Placements
| Elementary |
22% |
| Secondary |
78% |
| Special Education |
16% |
| Teach at a school with another corps member or alumnus |
88% |
Placements Available
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early childhood
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elementary
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ESL
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specific subject secondary
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special education
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Living and Education Expenses
Salary and Taxes
| Salary |
$37,000 - $42,000 |
| Taxes |
20.7% - 24.42% |
Cost of Living
| Housing Single |
$800 - $1,350 |
| Housing Shared |
$500 - $1,000 |
| Health Insurance |
$75 |
| Utilities |
$100 |
| Daycare |
N/A / month |
| Monthly Tranist Pass |
$60 - $80 |
| Car Insurance |
$225 |
| Car Required |
Access to car is essential |
Start-up Costs
| Testing Costs |
$130 - $260 |
| Up-front Certification Costs |
$60 - $80 |
| How do you pay start-up costs? |
Out-of-pocket |
Ongoing Costs through the Two-year Commitment
| Ongoing Certification Costs |
$11,000 |
| Use AmeriCorps award for testing/certification costs? |
Yes |
| How is teaching certification structured in this state/region? |
2 year - Through university & Teach For America |
| Is it possible to complete a master's degree at the end of two years? |
Yes |
| Is the completion of a master's degree required as part of the two-year commitment? |
No |
| Extra Master's Degree Costs |
$14,000 |
| Partner Universities |
American University or George Mason University |
Notes and Clarifications
- Beginning teacher salary: If you have a master's degree in education, are placed in a bilingual classroom, or in a math/science classroom you may receive additional compensation.
- Avg. health insurance: In some placement districts, health insurance premiums are pre-tax deductions.
- Total tax rate: Federal + state + city. Only applies to starting salaries.
- Up-front certification: Expenses that must be paid before your first day of teaching.
- Paying start-up costs: Can you pay for testing and up-front certification costs with transitional grants and loans or do you have to pay out-of-pocket?
- Ongoing certification: Total certification costs over two-year teaching commitment.
- AmeriCorps award for certification: Can you use your AmeriCorps award to pay testing/certification costs?
- Master's in two years: Is it possible to complete a master's degree at the end of two years?
- Master's required: Is the completion of a master's degree required as part of the two-year commitment?
- Extra master's degree costs: Additional total cost to obtain a master's degree (on top of ongoing certification costs); does not include AmeriCorps award.
- Partner university(ies): These universities partner with Teach For America for ongoing certification requirements, and in some cases, the fulfillment of a master's degree in education.
