Teach For America is a diverse network of leaders working to confront educational inequity through teaching and at every sector of society to create a country free from this injustice. Together, we are driving impact across the country to achieve our vision that one day all children in this nation will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education.
53K
Alumni
6797
Corps Members
A Force For Change
Teach For America is a community of changemakers and coalition-builders. We are leaders who teach, teachers who lead.
We are committed to profound systemic change. As a collective force—educators, advocates, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and community members—we fight for the aspirations of students and their families. Together, we shape the conversation about what's possible. From classrooms to districts to statehouses across America, we’re reimagining education to realize the day when every child has an equal opportunity to learn, to grow, to influence and to lead.
Significant progress in educational outcomes is happening in communities across the country. And TFA alumni and corps members are playing an essential role.
Learn more about Teach For America's history.
Leading the Way to Change
Cait Clark (South Carolina '12) volunteers alongside families at her community church in Bennettsville, South Carolina.
Lindsey Bailey (Hawai’i ‘12) teaches 3rd grade at Makakilo Elementary School in Makakilo on Oahu.
photo by: SALLY RYAN
David Silver (Los Angeles '95) is the Director of Education for the Oakland Unified School District. He was the founding principal of Think College Now (TCN) charter school in Oakland.
Through teaching in our public schools and partnering with children and families in communities that are most impacted by educational inequity, this network of changemakers is helping strengthen the education system and shape the future of our country.
Learn more about our regions.
The Diversity of Our Network
In 2017, 6,797 corps members led alongside more than 53,000 alumni in 51 urban and rural regions across the U.S. Each of us brings unique strengths to this work based on our identities and life experiences. Here’s a snapshot of this diversity in action.
Corps Member Diversity
48.9%
White
49.6%
People of Color
18.2%
African American
14%
Latinx
6%
Asian American/Pacific Islander
1%
Native
43.9%
Pell Grant
33.9%
First in family to graduate college
Kevin Fang, MD
Metro Atlanta '07
Community Medicine Fellow in Pediatrics
Fang works with the most vulnerable residents in the city of Los Angeles. As a fellow and the only LA-based pediatrician in Kaiser Permanente's highly regarded Community Medicine Fellowship Program, Fang divides his time between seeing patients at various federal and community clinics throughout Southern California and teaching in Kaiser's residency program.
Aisha Dennis
Metro Atlanta '08
Attorney
Federal Public Defender of the Northern District of Texas
TFA prepared Aisha to be a successful attorney. The experience gave her a deep connection to high-needs communities, taught her how to build relationships, and made her a better advocate.
Michelle Strausman
Greater Philadelphia '11
Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions
Stanford University
Now in her dream job in the admissions office for a top university, Michelle Strausman realized that a career in education was the perfect fit after joining Teach For America.
Staff Diversity
52%
White
48%
People of color
20%
African American
12%
Latinx
8%
Asian American/Pacific Islander
1%
Native
Our Community Alliances & Initiatives
At Teach For America, we value our partnerships with those united in our vision: students and their families, fellow educators, community leaders, and national organizations. Through our established National Community Alliances, we foster relationships and amplify opportunities for collective learning and impact as we work to improve educational outcomes for all.
The Community Alliances and Initiatives speak to our core of our mission, values, and deep commitment to pursuing the same diversity, equity, and inclusiveness we envision for the U.S. and its Indigenous Nations.
The Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Alliances to work alongside other organizations to deliver on the promise of equal opportunity for every child, grow the field of AAPI teachers, and raise awareness of the academic and socio-economic realities facing many AAPI students.
Learn more about the Asian American and Pacific Islander Alliances.
The Black Community Alliances cultivates and develops relationships with external organizations and recruitment initiatives with the goal of increasing the number of teachers of color, in the classroom.
The Latinx Alliances strives to be one of the most connected, active, thriving, and culturally responsive Latinx leadership networks in pursuit of educational equity in the U.S. Comprised of over 5,000 Latinx corps members, alumni, and staff, the mission of the Latinx Alliance is to connect and forge pathways for members of the Latinx community to achieve their full educational, economic, and social potential.
Students of color, those from low-income areas, and those who identify as LGBTQ+ face oppression based on their multiple identities. Teach For America is committed to safety, fairness, and dignity for all students. That’s why we’re taking a stand.
Our LGBTQ+ Community Initiative aims to create a more intersectional movement to end educational inequity by encouraging more LGBTQ+ leaders to teach.
Teach For America’s Military Veterans Initiative helps to bring more veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces into the fight against educational inequity.
The initiative works with several veterans' organizations, including the nonprofit Got Your 6, the Department of Defense's Troops to Teachers transition program, and the Student Veterans of America to ensure that military veterans and spouses are aware of teaching as a second career and that students across the country benefit from their talent and commitment.
The Native Alliance Initiative (NAI) works with Native students and leaders in Hawai‘i, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, the Twin Cities, and Washington state.
The alliance initiative works hand-in-hand with tribes and Native communities to expand educational opportunities for their students. Created to support and provide corps members with more strategies for incorporating tribal and community culture into the classroom, NAI recruits Native leaders to the teaching profession, and develop a critical pipeline of leaders committed to advocating for Native communities and children.