Since our inception 17,000 individuals have participated in Teach For America, impacting the lives of more than 2.5 million students.

Alumni impact

A significant and growing number of alumni hold leadership roles—as lead teachers, principals, nonprofit directors, school board members, and social entrepreneurs—in high-need communities across the country. The vast majority of our alumni, regardless of career path, remain committed to our mission of ensuring educational equity, well beyond their corps commitments. In fact, 94 percent report that they are supporting Teach For America's mission through career, philanthropy, volunteer work, or graduate study.

We are encouraged by increasing evidence of the effect our alumni are having in communities across the country, from Newark to New Orleans to Oakland.

Snapshot of alumni impact on a community: Washington, D.C.

  • Public School Chancellor Michelle Rhee (Baltimore Corps '92) leads a senior team of kindred spirits, many of whom are Teach For America alumni, including Deputy Chancellor Kaya Henderson (New York City Corps '92) and Jason Kamras (Metro D.C. Corps '96), the city's first-ever National Teacher of the Year.
  • Abigail Smith (Eastern North Carolina Corps '92) serves as a mayoral policy adviser for education.
  • Sekou Biddle (New York City Corps '93) is one of five elected state school board members.
  • More than 10 percent of the city's schools are now run by Teach For America alumni.

Alumni are tackling some of the most challenging issues affecting children in low-income communities across the nation. Following is an overview of the work they are doing and the impact they are having:

Alumni Social Impact Report

Alumni by sector

More than two-thirds of Teach For America alumni are currently working or studying full-time in the field of education. Those who work outside of education bring their unique experience and perspective to a great variety of sectors-including law, business, medicine, and policy-where their efforts are increasing opportunities in low-income communities.

Alumni by sector

Alumni in education

Among the 67 percent of alumni working or studying full-time in education, half are teachers.

Alumni in education

Of alumni working in schools:

  • 34% work in a low-income community outside their placement region
  • 20% work in their original placement region
  • 18% work in their original placement school
School type

Alumni in teaching

Many alumni in the classroom are serving in high-need areas, including special education, math, and science.

Alumni in teaching

  • 226 alumni have earned National Board Certification through the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. 223 are currently candidates for this distinction.
  • Hundreds of alumni have won the highest teaching accolades on a national and local level. In 2005, Jason Kamras (Metro D.C. Corps '96) was named National Teacher of the Year. This year, Kristin Bourguet (S. Louisiana Corps '99) and Justin Minkel (N.Y.C. Corps '00) were named Arizona and Arkansas teachers of the year respectively. Minkel was also a finalist for the 2007 National Teacher of the Year.

Alumni in school leadership

A significant number of Teach For America alumni hold leadership roles in district and charter school systems across the country.

246 alumni are leading schools across the country

3 alumni serve as traditional school district superintendents/chancellors:

  • Michelle Rhee (Baltimore Corps '92), Chancellor of the District of Columbia Public Schools
  • Cami Anderson (L.A. Corps '93), Superintendent of District 79, Alternative Schools and Programs, New York City Department of Education
  • Brian Osborne (N.Y.C. Corps '91), Superintendent of South Orange/Maplewood School District in New Jersey

Alumni in political leadership

In recent years, Teach For America alumni have been successful in assuming leadership roles within the political arena.

15 Teach For America alumni currently serve as elected officials

  • Josh Anderson (New York City Corps '04), Lincoln Elementary Local School Council (Chicago)
  • Layla Avila (Los Angeles Corps '97), South Whittier School District Board of Trustees (California)
  • Sekou Biddle (New York City Corps '93), D.C. State Board of Education
  • Denise Boban (Phoenix Corps '05), Nettlehorst Elementary Local School Council (Chicago)
  • Dani Duran (Los Angeles Corps '04), Downtown Neighborhood Council (Los Angeles)
  • Tina Hone (Bay Area Corps '93), Fairfax County School Board (Virginia)
  • Greg Janes (South Louisiana Corps '94) Ravenswood Elementary Local School Council (Chicago)
  • Natasha Kamrani (Houston Corps '91), Houston Independent School District Board of Education
  • Mike Kristovic (Mississippi Delta Corps '03), Henry Clay Elementary Local School Council (Chicago)
  • Nicholas Krump (Metro D.C. Corps '97), Phoenix Elementary School District Governing Board
  • Jen Miller-Arsenault (Rio Grande Valley Corps '92), Rumney Memorial School Board (Vermont)
  • Kunjan Narechania (Eastern North Carolina Corps '00), Sabin Magnet Elementary Local School Council (Chicago)
  • Efe Osagie (Houston Corps '04), Willingboro School Board (New Jersey)
  • Drew Elliot Smith (Bay Area Corps '99), North Plainfield School Board of Education (New Jersey)
  • Edd Taylor (Bay Area Corps '92), Pierce Elementary Local School Council (Chicago)

200 alumni work on Capitol Hill, in policy or in advocacy

Alumni in social entrepreneurship

Our alumni are being recognized for their leadership in social entrepreneurship:

3 Echoing Green Fellows:

  • Furman Brown (L.A. Corps '90), Founder and Executive Director of Generation Schools
  • Anthony Jewett (N.Y.C. Corps '03), Founder and CEO of Bardoli Global
  • Chris Myers Asch (Delta Corps '94), Cofounder of the U.S. Public Service Academy

3 Aspen Institute-NewSchools Entrepreneurial Leaders for Public Education Fellows:

  • Chris Barbic (Houston Corps '92), Founder and Head of YES Prep Public Schools
  • Kaya Henderson (N.Y.C. Corps '92), Vice President for Strategic Partnerships of The New Teacher Project
  • Elisa Villanueva Beard (Phoenix Corps '98), Chief Operating Officer of Teach For America

Alumni accolades

Our alumni are winning prestigious leadership awards.

  • 6 Broad Residents in Urban Education
  • 22 Coro Fellows
  • 32 Fulbright Scholars
  • 19 Presidential Management Fellows
  • 4 Rhodes Scholars
  • 4 Skadden Fellows

Most popular graduate schools

Business
Harvard University
Stanford University
Yale University
Northwestern University
University of Texas at Austin 		Education
Pace University
Harvard University
Loyola Marymount University
Johns Hopkins University
Teachers College, Columbia University 		Law
Harvard University
New York University
Georgetown University
University of California-Berkeley
University of Texas at Austin
Medicine
University of North
Carolina at Chapel Hill
Harvard University
University of California-San Francisco
Johns Hopkins University
University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston 		Policy
Harvard University
New York University
University of Chicago
Syracuse University
University of Texas at Austin
The information in this report is based on self-reported data as of April 2007 and represents more than 57% of our alumni network. Percentages are rounded and may not add up to 100.

Hear from alumni effecting fundamental change from every sector.

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Learn more about the work alumni are doing and our initiatives to foster their ongoing leadership