Wednesday, June 25, 2008

So this is Teach for America


So here I am, in New York City. To say the least, it's been a long journey that's gotten me here, but I'll admit that I am excited about the future and the potential to change the lives of students.

To catch everyone up, I graduated from the University of Florida with my master's degree in mass communications in May 2008. After writing a 145-page thesis, I realized that I needed a break from school for a while. So after some soul searching, and job hunting, I realized that I had fallen in love with teaching as a teaching assistant during graduate school. Granted, teaching college students is completely different than teaching middle or high school students, but I still felt like now was the time for me to make a difference in the lives of students. Plus, the media job market was looking a little slim, so I decided to consider doing Teach for America.

I didn't apply for Teach for America (TFA) on a whim. I had heard about it as an undergrad and was asked to apply several times my senior year at UF. However, graduate school was beckoning, so I decided to stay in school. However, after several of my friends joined the ranks of TFA, I learned a great deal from their personal experiences while working with students to help end educational inequality across America. I listened to their stories with great interest and felt called to join their mission.

Once the interview process was over and I learned about my placement in New York City, my excitement continued to grow. Living in New York had been a dream of mine for nearly a decade. In fact, I almost attended college in the city immediately after high school. So in many ways, my acceptance into TFA was a realization of a long-time dream.

I decided to start this blog on the eve of my formal induction in New York City. The rest of the corps and I arrived in New York on Sunday, June 22, and have been engaged in interviews and various other personal outings the last couple of days. But, starting tomorrow, formal training begins. So this blog is my attempt to share my experiences about learning to be a better teacher and my transition to life in NYC with all those interested.

Happy reading, and I'll fill you in on the details of the last couple of days in future posts.

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