August 3, 2009

School of Education partners with Teach for America

More than 20 percent of new teachers in Baltimore City for the coming school year are from Teach for America, and many will earn their education degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Education. The 2009–2010 TFA class is double the previous year’s total and represents Baltimore City School CEO Andres Alonso’s commitment to the program.

Teach for America has partnered with Johns Hopkins for the past 10 years. School of Education faculty members coordinate support with the TFA Baltimore office to help new teachers become effective classroom instructors and be prepared for the urban school environment. According to Alonso, middle and high school students taught by TFA participants outperformed students in the rest of the district even though the teachers worked in some of the most challenging schools.

“I think of Teach for America as almost an instrument of reform in the district, in that the mission and commitment of the partners is very much in line with the reforms we are putting in place,” Alonso said.

TFA draws from a national corps of recent college graduates who commit to at least two years of teaching, during which they must complete a master’s degree in education. For this year, the organization experienced a 45 percent increase in applications, which included those from 5 percent of Johns Hopkins seniors.