Dallas Leaders To Head Public School Classrooms During Teach For America Week
Teach For America Week draws community leaders nationwide to support educational excellence for all children. These individuals visit the classrooms of Teach For America teachers, also known as corps members, and teach lessons based on their experience in business, politics, and beyond. An annual event since 1997, Teach For America Week will take place in 30 regions across the country in 2010.
As part of Teach For America Week, Mrs. Laura W. Bush will teach in Heather Holland’s class at Nancy Cochran Elementary School on Tuesday, April 6. Holland, a Dallas native who graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, is in her first year of teaching.
This year—Teach For America’s first in Dallas—94 corps members are reaching more than 7,000 students in the city’s underserved schools while some 100 alumni are working from every sector to level the playing field for students and families in low-income communities.
A growing body of rigorous research demonstrates the effectiveness of Teach For America corps members as classroom teachers. A 2008 Urban Institute study updated last year found that corps members have a positive effect on student achievement relative to other teachers, including experienced teachers, traditionally prepared teachers, and those fully certified in their field. An earlier study by Mathematica Policy Research found that students of corps members make 10 percent more progress in a year in math than is typically expected and slightly exceed the normal expectation for progress in reading.
Herbert Marcus Elementary School
Nancy Cochran Elementary School
Raul Quintanilla, Sr. Middle School
Thomas C. Marsh Middle School
W.W. Samuel High School
Schedule of confirmed guest teachers:
Monday, April 5
David Buggs, Chief Diversity Officer, FedEx Office
Kim Spight, Sales Manager, FedEx Services
Laura W. Bush
Fran Eichorst, Vice President, Public Affairs, Fidelity
Thursday, April 8
Yasmin Bhatia, CEO, Uplift Education
Jeff Heyman, Vice President, FedEx Office
Michael Hinojosa, Superintendent, Dallas Independent School District
William McKenzie, Columnist, Dallas Morning News
Brian Philips, President and CEO, FedEx Office