• Our alumni
• Alumni support
• Graduate school partnerships
• Employer partnerships
• Alumni Summits
• Alumni Leadership Initiatives
• One Day - Alumni Magazine

• Corps and Alumni
• Donors
• Employers & Grad Schools
• Family and Friends
• Media
• Potential Staff

Teach For America Weathers the Tough Times

One Day sat down with Teach For America President Matt Kramer to talk about the recession's effect on the corps and how the organization plans to navigate a challenging fundraising landscape.

Are tough times affecting recruitment?
As of the third recruitment deadline in January, we had received 22,363 applications, which is an increase of 54 percent over the same time last year. These record numbers probably have something to do with the current economic climate and a drop in recruitment by some of our traditional competitors. But our application numbers were already ahead of last year's by 30 percent before the economic crisis hit. I think much of this is attributable to the extraordinary effort and commitment of so many people— staff, alumni, and corps members.

With fewer teachers retiring and less district money for new teachers, are you worried about placing corps members?
We're working hard across our regions to secure placements. We've been gathering information to identify potential risks well in advance, and we're developing a strategy to diversify corps-member placements for each region. We're also adjusting our admissions approach to minimize the chance that we place corps members in regions that won't have enough job openings in the fall.

We're also seeing some very hopeful signs in our plans to expand to new sites. We've got funding for Nashville
secured for the first three years, and funding for Dallas and Milwaukee nearly secured.

We're proceeding cautiously, but we're optimistic. There are several regions, including Baltimore, Kansas City, and South Louisiana, where strong placement demand and development potential exist. These communities are turning the economic crisis into an opportunity to bring more of our corps members into their highest-need classrooms. Overall, we've held steady on our approach to placements in the last few months, targeting a 2009 corps of almost 4,000, compared with 3,600 last year. But we'll be closely evaluating our progress on this course and hope to be able to increase this number to meet our goal of 4,100 by the end of the recruitment season.

What's the financial outlook?
Obviously, downturns aren't good for charitable giving, but historically they haven't been as bad as you might think. During the five recessions since 1969, charitable giving slowed an average of 1 percent after adjusting for inflation. The good news is that our revenue is diversified across many streams, and a significant portion is concentrated in gifts from longtime individual and foundation donors who are committed to our work in good times and bad. Certainly the current environment requires us to be extra-vigilant, so we're devoting more energy to talking with our donors to confirm their continued support and taking steps to ensure that we're well-positioned financially to continue to meet all the demand for corps members.

Anything alums can do to help?
Furthering the mission matters most, in all the ways that alumni do it. Showing their support for us by donating or volunteering helps, and is also a huge incentive for others to invest in our work. And simply being an active member of our incredible alumni network—participating in summits, mentoring other alumni, and being vocal about how we can support your efforts better. Ultimately, our job is to help make sure that our alumni have the resources, connections, and opportunities they need to maximize the impact of their work.