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 Adding to the Ranks of Our State's Top Teachers
 Chances are, if you're a college student or recent graduate, you've heard of Wendy Kopp (right). Teach For America, the organization she founded, received more than 35,000 applications last year from young people aspiring to become entry-level teachers in underserved schools across the country. Among these applicants were 230 college seniors in Rhode Island, including 14 percent of the Brown graduating class and four percent of seniors at Providence College.
 I hope we'll all be hearing more about Teach For America soon, because the organization is considering an expansion to Rhode Island. Ms. Kopp is visiting our city this week, raising awareness of the educational disparities in our nation, where fourth graders in economically disadvantaged areas are two to three grade levels behind their peers in wealthier areas. These disparities disproportionately affect children of color, who are three times as likely to live in a low-income community. While acknowledging this grim reality, Teach For America focuses on the potential of all children to learn at the highest levels. After 20 years of recruiting, training, and supporting teachers in underserved schools, the organization is convinced that educational inequity is a solvable problem. And The Rhode Island Foundation - with our focus on improving public education in the state - believes that the time is right for Teach For America to become part of the solution in our schools.
Read the op-ed by Foundation President & CEO Neil D. Steinberg that appeared in the November 23 Providence Journal. |
