Living Here

Our corps members live in about 60 different towns across Arkansas and Mississippi, and being a part of these communities is a distinctive feature of Delta living. Many corps members choose to live in the communities where they teach, while others live in larger towns near their placement sites and commute to school. Since the neighborhoods where they live are often small, corps members find themselves in very close-knit relationships with their Teach For America colleagues and veteran teachers in their schools and districts. They also have the opportunity to form strong bonds with local residents and join them in positively impacting the region’s future.

In the Delta, it’s almost guaranteed that you’ll run into your fellow corps members or your students on an outing to the grocery store. Schools and churches remain primary community gathering places and important local events include Friday night high school football games, annual homecoming parades, PTA meetings, gospel concerts, religious services, and the various celebrations that highlight our region’s heritage and culture. Festivals devoted to the blues, crawfish, catfish, and barbecue take place throughout the area and the year. Most corps members take advantage of these opportunities to immerse themselves in their local communities, and find that by doing so, the relationships they build ultimately help them become more successful in their classrooms.

Although the Delta is technically a rural region, corps members have access to such standard amenities as major supermarkets, big box stores, and fitness centers within a 30-minute drive of most placement sites. Our region is very much a nexus of smaller towns and cities, connected by major roadways.