Our 14,000 alumni are a leadership force - working from within education and from every sector to effect fundamental change.

Policy and Advocacy Initiative

"Teach For America alumni have had the benefit of experiencing first-hand some of the biggest challenges in our country: the education system specifically, and poverty more generally. Systemic change requires policy change and good policy change requires the involvement of people who truly understand the issues at hand."

- Sondra Youdelman (Los Angeles '94)
Executive Director
Community Voices Heard

Policy and advocacy leaders play a critical role in deploying resources and setting priorities for governments and communities. Already, many alumni are working in high-impact roles in these fields, yet we need to grow the number of alumni leaders in policy and advocacy roles in order to create, influence, and implement policies and practices that will help achieve our vision.

The Policy and Advocacy Leadership initiative works to help alumni pursue leadership roles as policy advisors, experts in public agencies or executive offices, and leaders in advocacy or policy-focused organizations. By providing resources and training and developing partnerships so that influential leaders and external organizations recognize the potential of alumni as leaders for social change.

As more alumni assume positions that enable them to set priorities and influence policy decisions, their efforts will play a powerful role in changing the prevailing ideology that continues to tolerate inequity across communities, issues, and institutions. We encourage you to do the same.

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Resources

  • One-on-One Support: Regional directors of alumni affairs meet with alumni considering careers in policy and advocacy to provide assistance with local and national resources and network building.
  • Webinars: Online info sessions introduce alumni to national leadership development opportunities on policy and advocacy topics. Webinars include presentations on policy issues, securing jobs in public agencies, how to apply to graduate schools in policy, and information sessions about fellowships and other opportunities.
  • Policy and Advocacy Leadership E-newsletter: Alumni can receive monthly updates about policy and advocacy issues in the news, alumni profiles, featured graduate school and employment opportunities, as well as leadership development tools and resources.
  • Networking Opportunities: Alumni and partner organizations convene at national and regional alumni summits and local events sponsored by Teach For America, many of which will have specific sessions on policy or advocacy topics and opportunities.
  • Partnerships: Our graduate school and organizational partnerships help alumni build skills, access information, and research opportunities in policy and advocacy.

Alumni in Policy and Advocacy

The policy and advocacy fields provide a wide range of opportunities for leadership– the following are just a few examples of leadership positions in policy and advocacy:

Senior advisors to elected officials: oversee the research, crafting, and integration of the elected official’s policy positions, and typically play a role in communicating those positions to external audiences. The work of an advisor directly informs the platform and/or decision-making of an elected official, and effective advisors balance feasibility and equity, given the constraints and opportunities of the policy and political context.

  • Andrew Greenhill (Houston '91) – Chief of Staff, Tucson, Ariz., Mayor Bob Walkup (R)
  • Noah Kroloff (New York '95) – Chief of Staff for Policy, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano (D)
  • Jason Unger (Los Angeles '98) – Senior Policy Advisor, U.S. Senator Harry Reid, (D – Nev.) (Washington, D.C.)

Senior leadership positions in public agencies or executive offices: set, implement, and oversee policies and practices that play a critical role in carrying out political priorities. They help ensure the agency is in compliance with the mandates of higher agencies and legislation, and typically also monitor lower agencies. Effective leaders in these roles focus on measurable outcomes and policy improvements that emphasize equity.

  • Rebecca Daugherty Kaye (Atlanta '00) – Director of Policy Development and Government Relations, Atlanta Public Schools (Atlanta, Ga.)
  • RJ McGrail (Baltimore '98) – Director of Special Projects, Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, The Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Boston, Mass.)
  • Christopher Meyer (Greater New Orleans '04) – Health Policy Fellow, White House Fellowship Program
  • Josh Winter (New York '93) – Assistant Vice President, New York City Economic Development Corporation (New York, N.Y.)

Senior leadership positions in high-impact policy-focused or advocacy organizations: influence policy debates by heading advocacy campaigns, conducting research, and/or assisting the public sector in creating and implementing policies. They help provide the information and/or advocacy needed by policymakers and the public to make good decisions about priorities, practices, and funding. Effective leaders help their organizations build the capacity of stakeholders to participate in policy discussions, and they often serve as brokers between those who create and implement policy and those who are affected by it.

  • Mark Fraley (South Louisiana '92) – Lead Organizer, Greater Milwaukee Sponsors – Industrial Areas Foundation [organizing network] (Milwaukee, Wisc.)
  • Sandi Jacobs (New York '91) – Vice President for Policy, National Council for Teacher Quality (Washington, D.C.)
  • Nicholas Torres (New York '93) – Executive Director, Congreso de Latinos Unidos

Read more profiles of alumni in politics and policy

Contact Us

If you would like to learn more about the Policy and Advocacy Initiative and how we might be able to partner with your organization, contact lead@teachforamerica.org.