Dena Levitz, The Examiner
2008-05-14 07:00:00.0
Current rank: Not ranked

WASHINGTON -

 A record number of Teach For America participants are being placed in D.C. public schools next year, as District education officials tweak staffing and hire hundreds of instructors overall.

 Teach For America officials are set to announce today that 170 of their teachers are bound for schools in the region, which represents a nearly 20 percent increase over last year.

 Of those, about 50 will be instructors in Prince George’s County’s school system while the remaining share are assigned to D.C. directly.

Kay Anuluoha, regional communications director, said the number of college graduates in the program will be at record high levels next year with 3,700 graduates taking part.

 Since 1992, Teach For America has added more corps members each year in D.C.

 Organization officials said they believe the growth, particularly this time, is fueled by the increased proportion of applicants from the region’s universities, including Georgetown and George Washington universities.

 Teach For America trains young people as instructors primarily in the nation’s most underprivileged education systems, asking them for a two-year commitment in return for training and classroom experience.

 D.C. Public Schools boast 750 Teach for America alumni.

 Chancellor Michelle Rhee, herself a graduate of the program, indicated her support for the expansion in a statement Tuesday.

 “The current state of our schools cannot change without effective leadership like that of Teach For America corps members and alumni,” she said.

 Rhee’s assistant press secretary, Jennifer Calloway, told The Examiner that based on past system hiring, the chancellor expects to bring in 350 to 400 new teachers total.

 One Teach for America participant who has been assigned to D.C. schools, Iris Ferrufino, told The Examiner working in the District was her first choice.

 The University of Maryland student, who grew up in Prince George’s, said she wanted to stay nearby as well as to make a difference through Teach For America.

 “My family has asked me, [with the reform] ‘Why would you want to go into a district like that?’” she said. “I think when there’s a school district going through a process like that they need the most help. This is a great opportunity.”

dlevitz@dcexaminer.com