TFA

Remember, Arne Duncan and his cronies are all about self-dealing to his friends!  

Actually, this is a setback for Teach For America…in the short term because of the logistics around timing, funding cycles, and school budget patterns.  It could be in the long term, too, if policymakers are not careful.   I’m pretty sympathetic to the way the Administration wants to go on these funds overall (pdf).  And there is no reason that TFA shouldn’t have to compete alongside other programs for funding.  But given the politics around TFA and teacher preparation unless the language is clearly written to prioritize quality, results, and scale (meaning sizable multi-year grants that allow for growth) this could create a muddle where politics rather than evidence carries the day.   If I were in TFA’s shoes I’d be quite concerned about this given all those risks.

3 Replies to “TFA”

  1. TFA salaries 2007
    Wendy Kopp $268,585
    Matthew Kramer $274,050
    Em Rossy $204,775
    Kevin Hoffman $229,643
    Aimee a Davis $179,500
    Elisa V Beard $182,637
    Gillian Smith $200,325
    Jeffrey Wetzler $203,925
    Elissa Clapp $189,219
    Aylon S Samouha $182,861
    Andrew D Kopplin $164,037
    Jemina R Bernard $162,325

    Total $2,441,882

    2007 Expenses
    $124,550,696
    That year TFA trained 2,892 corp members who began teaching
    Roughly $43067 per teacher

  2. A lot of the current “reform” in education is actually about lining the pockets of some very smart business people. As Marc Dean Millot reminded us recently, there are already signs of back room deals, and conflicts of interest similar to those that occurred with Reading First. See http://www.schoolsmatter.info/

    In this recession, the worst possible thing to happen to education would be to defraud our children of tax money meant for them. My guess is that the Obama administration is beginning to see the handwriting on the wall and is starting to do something about it. Yes, it would be politically VERY foolish to allow education hustlers to fleece the public. A charter school might be a good idea but not if the “manager” pockets $350,000 in tax money for running a school with 300 students. Educators will not allow this to happen.

    As for TFA, the best thing these well-intentioned young people can do is to become fully certified and experienced before going into our most challenging schools. Disadvantaged students need teachers with a proven track record. For too many years our poorest students have gotten our most inexperienced teachers. It’s time to reverse this trend. If the Obama administration does only one thing, I hope it chooses to place highly-qualified and experienced teachers in our most challenging schools.

  3. Interesting writing. I was looking for a few differint things, this seemed to sum it up well. Added to my bookmarks.

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