The Digital Collegian - Published independently by students at Penn State
NEWS
[ Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2004 ]

Grads work to teach underprivileged

By Sarah Goldfarb email
Collegian Staff Writer

They don't have a teaching certificate, a major in education or professional experience.

Still, 20 recent Penn State graduates are teaching across America as part of a national movement to eliminate educational inequity.

The Penn State graduates are among nearly 1,750 graduates selected from 13,500 applicants to become part of Teach for America's program to teach for two years in a low-income or rural area.

Molly Buckley, Teach for America eastern recruitment director, said ideal candidates possess "tremendous" critical thinking skills, a record of achievement both academically and in their areas of study and personal responsibility.

"With the economy being so tough now, it has been really difficult for students to find jobs, so Teach for America is a great solution. It offers a competitive salary and benefits," Buckley said.

Since 1989 when the program started, 123 Penn State graduates have served as members. Penn State has positively affected nearly 21,000 students in low-income schools.

For the 2003-04 academic year, 136 Penn State students applied to the program, and 23 were accepted. The 17-percent acceptance rate exceeded Teach for America's overall national rate of 15 percent.
Vital Stats:
  • Participation:
    Over 12,000 people have gone through the program.
  • Applicants:
    Over 13,500 people applied nation-wide in 2003-04.
  • Penn State:
    136 students applied
  • Recipients:
    1,750 students nation-wide, including 23 Penn State students
  • Impact:
    1.75 million lowincome students affected

Cathy Dufour, MNBA Career Services associate director of employer relations, said the center has seen more students express interest in finding employment in non-profit organizations.

"Organizations like Teach for America offer students the opportunity to put their skills to work in much needed areas, like education and social services, to contribute to the social needs of our country," Dufour said.

Jason Bedford, Penn State's Peace Corps representative, said there has been a large increase in volunteerism among Penn State graduates.

"It is a great idea to take the upper-crust to teach the disadvantaged, especially in these times of government cutbacks," Bedford said.

Members attend a five-week training class during the summer before they begin teaching. Teach for America's rigorous training program provides members with basic teaching skills and experience and requires them to work with experienced teaching professionals and attend a series of workshops and discussions.

Princeton University graduate Wendy Kopp founded Teach for America in 1989 to help close the gap between children growing up in low-income areas and high-income areas. Since 1990, more than 9,000 college graduates have participated.

A recent study by the Mathematica Policy Research looked at standardized test scores from 2,000 students in 17 schools across the country. The study found that students led by Teach for America teachers outperformed their peers in mathematics by 10 percent. Teach for America participants did better than experienced teachers and teachers with credentials.

Rebecca Oberholtzer, a 2004 Penn State alumna, is currently teaching in a Philadelphia school as part of the program.

"This is the hardest thing I've done in my life thus far," Oberholtzer said. "There are so many different experiences; I'm being challenged emotionally, intellectually, and professionally."

Although Oberholtzer graduated with a degree in journalism, she said she does not know what she will do after Teach for America.

"I've joined this movement and have dedicated myself to the issue of education," she said. "It is amazing how much I've learned about myself through this."

 

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