Los Angeles
Overview
More than any time in recent history, there is a tremendous opportunity to impact students in Los Angeles.
One of the most acute reform movements in California is the proliferation of charter schools. Over the past five years, the charter school movement, which aims to bring accountability and academic achievement to underperforming public schools, has grown tremendously in California, with an accelerated growth in Los Angeles. The momentum the charter school movement has produced has also helped to build widespread consensus that the status quo in public education is unacceptable.
In Los Angeles, the time for change is now. Drop-out rates reflect the inequity in public schools where the achievement gap is staggering. A 2008 study found that out of the nation’s 50 largest cities, Los Angeles is ranked 42nd by graduation rate with a staggering 45.3 percent of students completing high school with a diploma. However, we are beginning to see the effects of our impact on the systemic level. In August 2009, the Los Angeles Times highlighted how the dropout rate in the Los Angeles United School District dropped by 17 percent in the 2007-2008 school year.
Life
Los Angeles County is 4,060 square miles of theaters, music, art, museums, television, motion pictures, and sporting events. It’s also diverse. Los Angeles has two Chinatowns, a Little Tokyo, Koreatown, Ethiopian cuisine on Fairfax Avenue, and Leimert Park, which is a center of African-American art. The entire area is a treasure trove of Latino history and culture.
Los Angeles is a product of 1,001 vibrant neighborhoods, making it fun for corps members to experience a little bit of everything during their two-year commitments. Each distinctive neighborhood has its own flavor, from Hollywood with its booming live theater scene and 21 new productions opening every week, to Palos Verdes with its ocean-front whale watching.
Corps members can live in a wide variety of communities within the Los Angeles County area. Most corps members who share housing find two to three-bedroom houses or apartments in beach communities or more-central city neighborhoods. The beach communities, which are a vital part of Los Angeles, have their own unique landmarks and cultures. Santa Monica is famous for a pier built in 1906, Redondo Beach is a haven for surfers, and Long Beach is home to the largest Cambodian community in the United States. Additionally, downtown Los Angeles is in the midst of urban revitalization. Its new lofts and commercial development attract many new residents.
Corps Culture
The Los Angeles corps is cohesive and supportive. The Teach For America • Los Angeles staff coordinates professional development activities for corps members, including professional learning communities, visits to high-performing schools, all-corps conferences, committee leadership opportunities and differentiated support for special education and early childhood teachers as well as observations and check-ins with program directors. Many corps members serve on school site-based decision-making committees or as department chairs and curriculum developers, driving instructional plans and initiatives that improve student achievement.
Los Angeles corps members have the opportunity to collaborate with a local base of over 1200 alumni on a wide range of social justice and long-term change initiatives. In addition, more than 43 alumni serve as principals and school administrators throughout Los Angeles. Our alumni continue to impact Los Angeles education in positions of political leadership, such a Steve Zimmer (Los Angeles ‘92), a newly elected member of the Los Angeles United School District Board of Education.
Teaching
Los Angeles is at the forefront of debates over school governance, scripted curriculum, access to college readiness coursework, and class size reduction. In addition, South Los Angeles, Watts, and Compton have experienced major demographic shifts in the last 10 years, transforming predominately African-American communities into African-American and Chicano/Latino communities. This shift has in some cases brought with it racial tension as well as lessons in collaboration, coalition, and unity.
Teach For America • Los Angeles currently places 36 percent of corps members in four traditional schools districts, 58 percent in independent charter schools or charter management organizations and 6 percent in early childhood education centers.
Historically, the majority of Los Angeles corps members teach in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). LAUSD is the second largest school district in the country. However, in light of recent budget cuts and subsequent workforce reductions in the district, only 20 percent of this year’s corps teaches in LAUSD. The remainder of the Los Angeles corps is placed in Baldwin Park Unified, Compton Unified School District, Pasadena Unified School District, Charter Schools and Early Childhood Education Centers (pre-K).
View a map of our placement areas.
Certification and Testing
According to the No Child Left Behind Act, every corps member must be enrolled in a University Intern Credentialing Program in order to be considered “highly qualified” and therefore eligible to teach. Nearly all Los Angeles corps members earn a California teaching credential and master's degree in education during their two-year commitment. You will be working towards a credential in the grade level/content area in which you are assigned and for which you will need to pass the CSET. In order to meet state and federal legislation, all Los Angeles corps members must take and pass the following three exams: the CSET (a subject matter competency), the CBEST (a basic skills exam), and a U.S. Constitution Exam.
Currently, our university partnership is with Loyola Marymount University (LMU). LMU is one of only five private universities in California to be accredited by the National Council for Teacher Education. Corps members typically spend five to six hours per week in classes.
For the 2009-2010 LMU program participants, the cost of these programs ranged from $3,000-8,000 per year, depending on whether corps members choose to participate in a simultaneous master’s program. Factored into these reduced costs includes Americorps awards, which total $4,725 per year. Please note all costs are subject to change.
Placements
| Pre-K |
6% |
| Elementary |
23% |
| Special Education |
19% |
Placements Available
-
general subject elementary(at the elementary and middle school level)
-
specific subject secondary
-
special education
-
bilingual
|
Living and Education Expenses
Salary and Taxes
| Salary |
$33,000 - $41,000 |
| Taxes |
19.98% - 23.95% |
Cost of Living
| Housing Single |
$900 - $1,600 |
| Housing Shared |
$700 - $1,200 |
| Health Insurance |
$50 - $60 |
| Utilities |
$120 |
| Daycare |
$800 / month |
| Monthly Tranist Pass |
$35 |
| Car Insurance |
$150 |
| Car Required |
Access to car is essential |
Start-up Costs
| Testing Costs |
$320 - $450 |
| Up-front Certification Costs |
$100 - $400 |
| How do you pay start-up costs? |
Out-of-pocket |
Ongoing Costs through the Two-year Commitment
| Ongoing Certification Costs |
$2,296 - $9,864 |
| Use AmeriCorps award for testing/certification costs? |
Yes |
| How is teaching certification structured in this state/region? |
2 year - Through university |
| 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 |
$1,574 - $4,382 |
| Partner Universities |
Loyola Marymount 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.
