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Corps and Alumni
New York
Hear about Teach For America's impact in New York from corps members, alumni, and donors. Watch Video
I am thrilled to be able to support Teach For America corps members and the work they do. . . . They embody extraordinary talent and the will to take no excuses in their mission to make our nation a better nation. They are impact players.
- Joel Klein, New York City Schools Chancellor
Teach For America • New York is playing a critical role in improving schools and communities. This year, a corps of 1,000 of the nation’s top recent college graduates is working in underserved schools across New York to ensure that students facing the challenges of poverty are given the educational opportunities they deserve. Our alumni are leaders in the classroom, in education more broadly, and across all sectors. Together, they are making educational equity a reality in New York. Learn about living and teaching in New York.
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Corps Impact |
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Alumni Impact |
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Financial Sustainability |
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Board & Supporters |
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Executive Director |
Press
Recent press releases
Recent press coverage
Corps Impact
In the 2008-09 school year, 1,000 corps members are reaching nearly 60,000 students in New York. Marialena Rivera is one example of the positive impact our corps members have on academic achievement.
Marialena Rivera (New York Corps '07) |
Marialena Rivera is an eighth grade math and social studies teacher in the Bronx at CS 211, The Bilingual School. At the beginning of the school year, she was surprised to find that most of her students did not know their multiplication tables or how to add fractions. Only two of her students could explain the differences between a continent, country, state, and city. Although her students lacked confidence, little by little Marialena inspired her students to push themselves harder than they ever thought possible. She stayed after school to teach prep classes, tutored students before school and at lunch, and sponsored the yearbook committee. Her students’ efforts paid off; 20 out of 21 students in her prep class passed the high school New York State Regents exam, and their math scores were 33 percent higher than the eighth grade scores of the previous year. Most importantly, her students now know they have the power to succeed in school and in life.
Principal Satisfaction
- 90 percent of recently-surveyed principals (in schools with Teach For America corps members) reported that they would hire another Teach For America teacher.*
- 95 percent of principals surveyed regard Teach For America teachers as effective as, if not more effective than, other beginning teachers in terms of overall performance and impact on student achievement.*
*"Teach For America 2007 National Principal Survey,” Policy Studies Associates, July 2007.
Impact on Student
Achievement
A growing body of research shows that corps members have a positive impact on their students' achievement. Read more about our impact.
Student Profile
Approximately 84 percent of students taught by corps members are eligible to receive free or reduced price lunch.
| Ethnicity | % of Students Taught by Corps Members |
|---|---|
| African-American | 40% |
| Latino/Hispanic | 55% |
| Asian-American | 3% |
| Caucasian | 2% |
New York: Corps Member Placement
| School Year | % of Corps* |
|---|---|
| Pre-K, Kindergarten | 4% |
| Elementary School (1-6) | 30% |
| Secondary Math | 10% |
| Secondary English | 12% |
| Secondary Science | 8% |
| Secondary Social Studies | 10% |
| Special Education (1-8) | 17% |
| Bilingual | 4% |
| ESL | 5% |
*Percentages are rounded and do not add up to 100 percent; corps members who teach bilingual or ESL are also accounted for in the grade-level/subject placement percentages
Characteristics of the 2008 Corps
| Corps Profile | Top alma maters by market share* |
|---|---|
| Average GPA: 3.6 | Spelman College: 16% |
| Average SAT: 1320 | Morehouse College, Williams College, Yale University: 11% |
| Held leadership roles on campus: 95% | Duke University, Georgetown University, University of Chicago, Wake Forest University, Wesleyan University: 10% |
| People of color: 29% | Amherst College, Harvard University, Haverford University, Notre Dame University, Princeton University, Rice University: 9% |
*Percentage of senior classes who applied to Teach For America.
Alumni Impact
Fostering Alumni Leadership for Systemic Change
As the number of corps members grows, so does our alumni base. By 2010, we will have over 3,000 Teach For America • New York alumni pursuing professional careers and impacting educational reform from every sector throughout the country.
- Nationally, more than 60 percent of corps members continue to work in education,
including more than 360 who are school leaders. - 93 percent of all alumni report they are supporting Teach For America’s mission
through their career, volunteer activity or graduate study.
Cami Anderson (Los Angeles Corps '93) |
Scott Fishman (D.C. Region Corps '97) |
Cami Anderson and Scot Fishman are two alumni in NYC working toward our mission. In 2008, Cami received Teach For America’s Peter Jennings Award for Civic Leadership, presented annually to one Teach For America alumnus/na whose work has led to far-reaching systemic change. As senior superintendent of District 79, Alternative High Schools and Programs in New York, Cami oversees the educational prospects of 90,000 of the city’s most underserved students – students who face extraordinary trauma and personal obstacles, including incarceration. Scot is the director of pro bono work for all of Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, an international law firm. Under his leadership, Dewey & LeBoeuf is the main pro bono legal services provider to Teach For America nationally.
An Efficient Program: Cost Breakdown
Growing Our Impact: Funding Needs
Each additional recruit is another dedicated teacher for children growing up in low-income communities in New York, and another talented leader with the insight and commitment necessary to sustain the reform efforts underway, which is critical to the ongoing vitality of our region. We must raise 20 million dollars a year through 2010 in order to support our corps of 1,000 teachers.
Board and Supporters
We are grateful to have many supporters who generously contribute to our movement in New York. The foundations, corporations and individuals listed below have made it possible for Teach For America to continue to recruit, select, train, and support teachers who are working to eliminate educational inequity in our city.
| Advisory Board |
|---|
| Charles T. Harris III (Co-Chair) Executive Partner SeaChange Capital Partners |
| Robert W. Scully (Co-Chair) Retired Office of the Chairman Morgan Stanley |
| Roger S. Aaron Partner Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP |
| Joseph V. Amato President Neuberger Berman, LLC |
| Victoria Elenowitz Past Chair and President Southampton Bath & Tennis Club |
| Edes P. Gilbert President & Consultant Resource Group 175 |
| Sue Lehmann Management Consultant |
| Robert H. Niehaus Chairman Greenhill Capital Partners |
| Scott Nuttall Partner Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. |
| Nancy Peretsman Executive Vice President & Managing Director Allen & Company, LLC |
| Larry Robbins Chief Executive Officer Glenview Capital Management |
| John Rodin Partner, Director of Research Glenview Capital Management |
| Howard Schiller Managing Director Goldman, Sachs & Co. |
| David Williams Chief Executive Officer Deloitte Financial Advisory Services LLP |
| Mark Zurack Adjunct Professor Columbia Business School & Cornell University |
Contact
To learn more about staff opportunities at Teach For America • New York or to request any additional information about Teach For America • New York please contact:
Jemina Bernard
Executive Director
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x435, f 212-279-2663
jemina.bernard@teachforamerica.org
To support Teach For America • New York with a gift or to request additional information about our Sponsor A Teacher program or corporate sponsorship opportunities, please contact:
Lucy Mayo
Vice President, Development
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x508, f 212-279-2663
To learn more about the Teach For America • New York Annual Benefit Dinner, please contact:
Meagan Hinchliffe
Managing Director, Planning, Ops & Special Events
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x168, f 212-279-2663
meagan.hinchliffe@teachforamerica.org
To learn more about Teach For America • New York, please contact:
Peter Rider
Vice President, Talent & Operations
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x429, f 212-279-2663
peter.rider@teachforamerica.org
To learn more about corps member placement and certification, alumni affairs, and school leadership, please contact:
Jessica Cordova Kramer
Vice President, District Strategy & Alumni Affairs
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x430, f 212-279-2663
jessica.cordova@teachforamerica.org
To learn more about corps member training and support, please contact:
Karn Engelsgjerd
Vice President, Program
519 8th Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, NY 10018
p 212-279-2666 x201, f 212-279-2663
karn.engelsgjerd@teachforamerica.org
Executive Director
We are thrilled to have Jemina R. Bernard join the New York Team as Executive Director. A native of the South Bronx, Jemina oversees the New York region, Teach For America’s largest with 1,000 corps members who collectively reach 60,000 students in more than 300 public schools per year. She joined Teach For America in 2007 after working for four years in the New York City Department of Education, where she was most recently Chief Operating Officer for the Office of New Schools. In that and other leadership roles in the department, she worked closely with Chancellor Joel I. Klein and Deputy Mayor Dennis M. Walcott. She also managed a cross-functional team that closed six poor-performing high schools and replaced them with new schools, oversaw a parent-support staff of more than 1,300 people, and managed the launch of 34 Community and Citywide Education Councils. Jemina has also worked at Deloitte Consulting and the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation. An alumna of Prep for Prep, she earned a B.A. from Yale University and an M.B.A. from the Columbia Business School.
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