Teach For America is unique in its ability to channel outstanding leadership into the education sector at an unparalleled rate. Throughout their teaching commitment, corps members operate on a mission to increase student achievement through whatever means necessary. Year after year, their passion and dedication distinguish them as some of our city’s finest teachers. We are proud to support Teach For America’s work in Houston.
- Nancy and Rich Kinder, Kinder Foundation
This year, nearly 350 of the nation’s most promising future leaders are teaching in our city’s lowest-income classrooms as a part of Teach For America • Houston. They are working to ensure their students have the educational opportunities they deserve. Our alumni are a leadership force, working from within education and every professional sector to effect broader change. Together they are helping us make educational equity a reality in Houston. Learn about living and teaching in Houston.
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During the 2007-08 school year, nearly 350 corps members are directly impacting the lives of more than 30,000 students in Houston. Paulette Escobar is one example of the tremendous difference our corps members are making.
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Paulette Escobar (Houston Corps '06) |
Paulette teaches third grade bilingual students at Windsor Village Elementary in the Houston Independent School District. At the beginning of her first year of teaching, her students were scoring 40 percent or less on benchmark tests for the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). Paulette worked to invest her students and their parents in constantly measuring and celebrating their academic growth, such that her students began requesting more quizzes and tests in order to chart their improvement. Their hard work resulted in huge success: 95 percent of her students passed the TAKS, with nine students receiving a commended score; and her class grew multiple grade levels in reading and math on the Stanford 10, another assessment. Paulette intends to continue teaching while pursuing a master’s degree in dual language acquisition.
Houston: Our Impact on Students and Schools Today
| School Year | Corps Members | Students Reached |
|---|---|---|
| 2005-06 | 251 | 21,335 |
| 2006-07 | 280 | 23,800 |
| 2009-10 | 500* | 42,500* |
*projected |
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Principal Satisfaction
*"Teach For America 2007 National Principal Survey,” Policy Studies Associates, July 2007.
Impact on Student Achievement
According to a highly regarded study by Mathematica Policy Research, corps members outpaced fully certified and veteran teachers in their schools in moving their students ahead academically. Read national results.
Student Profile
Houston: Corps Member Placement
| Assignment | # of Corps Members | % of Corps |
|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 32 | 9% |
| Science | 42 | 12% |
| Special Education | 10 | 3% |
| Social Studies | 25 | 7% |
| English | 73 | 21% |
| Elementary | 123 | 35% |
| Early Childhood | 7 | 2% |
| Bilingual | 21 | 6% |
| English as a Second Language | 17 | 5% |
| Total | 350 | 100% |
*Percentages are rounded and may not add up to 100 percent.
Characteristics of the 2008 Corps
| Corps Profile | Top alma maters by market share* |
|---|---|
| Average GPA: 3.6 | Spelman College: 16% |
| Average SAT: 1320 | Morehouse College, Williams College, Yale University : 11% |
| Held leadership roles on campus: 95% | Duke University, Georgetown University, University of Chicago, Wake Forest University, Wesleyan University: 10% |
| People of color: 29% | Amherst College, Harward University, Haverford University, Notre Dame University, Princeton University, Rice University: 9% |
*Percentage of senior classes who applied to Teach For America
Fostering Alumni Leadership for Systemic Change
As the number of corps members grows, so does our alumni base. By 2010, we will have over 765 Teach For America • Houston alumni pursuing professional careers and impacting educational reform from every sector.
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Anthony Jewett (Corps '03) |
Anthony Jewett and Reid Whitaker are two of the many alumni continuing to work toward our vision in Houston. After teaching third grade dual-language for Teach For America, Anthony Founded Bardoli Global, Inc, a Houston-based social enterprise dedicated to dramatically increasing opportunities for historically underrepresented student leaders of color to participate in life-changing study abroad and international exchange programs.
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Jarrett (Reid) Whitaker (Corps '02) |
Jarrett Reid Whitaker began his career at Port Houston Elementary as a Teach For America • Houston corps member. For his exemplary campus leadership, Reid earned the H-E-B “Rising Star” Excellence in Education award in 2005 and went on to work as a science content specialist for the Houston Independent School District and the Rice University Center for Education. Reid is a graduate of the Houston A+ Challenge Critical Friends Coaching Training. In the summer of 2007—only five years after joining Teach For America—he accepted a principal position at Port Houston Elementary, making him one of the youngest principals in the district.
An Efficient Program: Cost Breakdown
Growing Our Impact: Funding Needs, 2007-2010
Each additional recruit is another dedicated teacher for children growing up in low-income communities in Houston, and another talented leader with the insight and commitment necessary to sustain the reform efforts underway, which is critical to the ongoing vitality of our region.
| Year | Corps Size | Revenue Needs |
|---|---|---|
| 2007-08 | 406 | $6.9 million |
| 2008-09 | 450* | $8.4 million* |
| 2009-10 | 500* | $8.9 million* |
*projected |
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We are grateful to have many supporters who generously contribute to our movement in Houston. The foundations, corporations and individuals listed below have made it possible for Teach For America to continue to recruit, select, train, and support teachers who are working to eliminate educational inequity in our city.
| Houston Regional Board |
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| Michael Dee (Chair) Retired Managing Director Morgan Stanley |
| Laura Arnold President Arnold Family Foundation |
| Prabha Bala Community Volunteer |
| Bill Berry Retired Executive Vice President, Exploration & Production ConocoPhillips |
| Leslie Blanton Community Volunteer |
| Robert C. Collins Partner, Investment Services Management Group PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP |
| Martyn Goossen President, Houston Division JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. |
| Robert Graham Retired Chairman AIM Investments |
| Ann Kennedy Former Executive Director/CEO Houston Symphony |
| Neda Ladjevardian Community Volunteer |
| D. Mark Leland Executive VP and CFO El Paso Corpoaration |
| Sultana Mangalji Community Volunteer |
| Lisa Mathis Community Volunteer |
| Sherea McKenzie Executive Director Joint City/County Commission on Children |
| Anne Mendelsohn Associate to the President M.D. Anderson Cancer Center |
| Bonnie New, MD Director Beacon Medical Management for Industry |
| Jim O’Shaughnessy Regional Director/Managing Director Morgan Stanley |
| Eric Pulaski Chairman and CEO Lightbulb Technology Partners Inc. |
| Shawn Raymond Partner Susman Godfrey, L.L.P. |
| Douglas M. Selman Retired Vice President, Research and Development ExxonMobil Chemical Company |
| Josephine Smith Community Volunteer |
| Y. Ping Sun University Representative Rice University |
| Lori Vetters Regional President, Houston Gulf Coast Wachovia |
To support Teach For America • Houston with a gift or to request additional information about our impact or finances, please contact:
Teach For America • Houston
Ann Best, Executive Director
Beatrice Dickson, Senior Managing Director of Development
4669 Southwest Freeway
Suite 600
Houston, Texas 77027
p 713-523-4100, f 713-523-5454
ann.best@teachforamerica.org
beatrice.dickson@teachforamerica.org
Ann Best is the executive director of Teach For America in Houston. Ann graduated from Oakwood College in 1996 with a bachelor's degree in communications. Upon graduation Ann was accepted into Teach For America and was assigned to teach kindergarten at Ed White Elementary School in Houston. She taught for four years and while teaching held several leadership positions. She was the grade level chairperson, a critical friends coach and a member of the school decision making committee. Ann moved on from the classroom to the staff of Teach For America in 2000. She began her work at Teach For America as a program director where she worked directly with Teach For America corps members to support them in the classroom and ensure they reached their ambitious goals for students. Ann was the region's first managing director of program and was promoted to the role of executive director in 2004. She has a passion for ensuring that children growing up in low-income communities have the opportunity to attain an excellent education. Her work with Teach For America in the Houston community allows her to work toward making that vision a reality on a daily basis.
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