strongStephanie Bradbury, Beacon Correspondent/strong
Teach for America representative Kate DeGolier met with the Student Government Association at Tuesday’s meeting to begin plans to increase recruitment efforts at Emerson.
DeGolier said she would like to host a recruitment session open to all students in mid-October. The event will be designed to give students, specifically seniors, more information on Teach For America and provide applications for students to fill out.
“What we’re looking for are innate leaders. We’re hoping you can take that power, combined with what we can offer and that will really be what will change the trajectory of these children,” DeGolier told SGA.
According to its website, Teach for America is a non-profit organization that works to eliminate educational inequity. Currently, Teach for America employs more than 9,300 college graduates.
Tanya Flink, SGA treasurer, asked during the meeting how hiring new graduates is more advantageous to the urban schools Teach for America partners with than people with proper teaching credentials.
DeGolier said the selected graduates are given a five week crash course in teaching and are sent to one of the 43 regions the non-profit works in. Teachers are paid by the school district they are assigned, and also receive full benefits.
In the past, DeGolier said Teach for America has hired many Emerson students and hopes to keep the trend going. According to Carol Spector, director of career services, the organization continues to be a popular choice.
“Last year there were either seven or eight students who went to work for Teach for America, and it was our biggest employer in that sense,” Spector said. “It was the employer that hired the most number of students.”
Brittany Perro, who graduated in May with a degree in communication studies, was hired by Teach For America and co-teaches an eighth grade inclusion math class in San Antonio, Texas. Perro had been recruited by Teach for America representatives during her senior year and decided to apply.
“These kids have been disserviced their whole life. They want to be inspired, and I feel like no one is more inspiring than Emersonians,” said Perro.