NGO Funding Request
The recipient entity's full legal name:
Teach For America, INC.
The recipient entity's physical address:
Teach For America
25 Broadway, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10004
The recipient entity's mailing address (if different):
Teach For America: 25 Broadway, 12th Floor, New York, NY 10004
Teach For America – Greater Baton Rouge: 501 Government Street, Ste. 100, Baton Rouge, LA 70802
Teach For America – Greater New Orleans: 865 Fulton Street, Ste. 400, New Orleans, LA 70130
Type of Entity (for instance, a nonprofit corporation):
Non-Profit Corporation
If the entity is a corporation, list the names of the incorporators:
Christy Burton
Dan Carroll
Hannah Cocca
Chanelle Hardy
Bill Haslam
Kaya Henderson
Steve Mandel
DeRay Mckesson
Ken Mehlman
Dan Porterfield
Linnea Conrad Roberts
Lindy Schumacher
Kevin Huffman
Miguel Solis
David Kenny (Chair)
Elisa Villanueva Beard
Dr. Michael L. Lomax
The last four digits of the entity's taxpayer ID number:
1913
What is the dollar amount of the request?
$2,000,000
What type of request is this?
General Appropriation
Is this entity in good standing with the Secretary of State?
Yes
Provide the name of each member of the recipient entity's governing board and officers:
Current Louisiana Executive Directors:
Laura Vinsant, Executive Director Teach For America Greater Baton Rouge
501 Government Street, Ste. 100, Baton Rouge, LA 70802
Ge’ron Tatum, Executive Director Teach For America Greater New Orleans
865 Fulton Street, Ste. 400, New Orleans, LA 70130
Board of Directors, CEO and Officers can be contacted at:
Teach For America, Inc.
25 Broadway, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10004
Governing ¿Board:
Christy Burton
Dan Carroll
Hannah Cocca
Chanelle Hardy
Bill Haslam
Kaya Henderson
Steve Mandel
DeRay Mckesson
Ken Mehlman
Dan Porterfield
Linnea Conrad Roberts
Lindy Schumacher
Kevin Huffman
Miguel Solis
David Kenny (Chair)
Elisa Villanueva Beard
Dr. Michael L. Lomax
Officers of the entity:
Elisa Villanueva-Beard, Chief Executive Officer
Jemina Bernard, President and Chief Operating Officer
Joy Okoro, Executive Vice President of Field Impact & Integration
Whitney Petersmeyer, Executive Vice President of Growth
Dr. Nathalie Henderson, Executive Vice President of Corps Member and Alumni Leadership Development
Michelle Culver, Senior Vice President of Founder Reinvention Lab
Alan Murray, Executive Vice President of Technology & Digital Experience
Dr. Barbara Logan Smith, Senior Vice President of Chief of Equity & Belonging
Steve Majors, Executive Vice President of Chief External Affairs Officer
Rachel Evans, Executive Vice President of Chief Revenue & Development Officer
Tracy-Elizabeth Clay, Executive Vice President of People & Administration
Melissa Anderson Goldberg, Vice President of Chief of Staff to the CEO
Provide a summary of the project or program:
At Teach For America (TFA), our first promise is to kids by providing the equitable and excellent education that they want and deserve. We are the premier source of education leaders for historically marginalized communities serving as tutors, corps members, mid-level leaders, principals, and more working from all angles of the system to expand opportunities for students and reimagine the future of education. Since 1990, Teach For America has worked to bring corps members (1st and 2nd year teachers) to Louisiana and grow those teachers into education leaders as well as champions of their students’ academic and personal growth. Through their time in the classroom, TFA corps members make an initial two-year commitment to teach, while developing a deep appreciation of their students' potential and an in-depth view of the systemic obstacles that hinder student success. Teach For America’s goal is to recruit high-quality teachers to classrooms, deliver coaching and professional development to help teachers lead their students toward academic and personal growth, and provide leadership opportunities to help educators advocate, create systemic change, and expand opportunities for students.
Teach For America alumni pursue a myriad of career paths that positively impact students and low-income communities. Today, Teach For America is a national network of over 67,000 leaders whose experience in the classroom sparked a lifelong commitment to expanding opportunities for students. Our alumni are well-positioned for impact because of their diverse backgrounds and perspectives and the lessons learned from their years in the classroom. Teach For America in Louisiana includes a network of 330 teachers, and over 210 school system leaders, principals and school support staff. Altogether, 70% of alumni work across sectors toward profound, enduring change in education. Over the past 34 years, TFA has grown in its commitment to ensuring that students have access to great teachers with a variety of perspectives and experiences – including individuals with similar backgrounds as our students. Seventy-six percent of TFA’s first-and second- year teachers in Louisiana share the backgrounds of the students they serve, identifying as Black, Indigenous, or people of color and/or as having come from a low-income background.
Teach For America’s core program includes:
Recruiting college graduates, graduate students, and professionals who have demonstrated great potential to become transformational teachers for students from historically underserved communities.
Facilitating matches between corps members and the schools where they can have their greatest impact.
Providing in-field teacher preparation through intensive pre-service training from May through the first days of school.
Providing training and leadership development through corps programming, specialized cohorts of educators, individual coaching throughout the year, and access to high-quality resources through platforms that allows corps members to engage in 1:1 personalized instructional coaching in their content area and access a library of high-quality instructional materials.
Increasing the capacity of our alumni base through recruitment pipelines and programming that facilitates mentorship, community-building, and career development.
Expanding the Ignite tutoring model to support reading growth for kindergarten- to third-grade students.
What is the budget relative to the project for which funding is requested?:
Salaries. . . . . . . . . . . . .
$1,500,000
Professional Services. . .
$500,000
Contracts . . . . . . . . . . .
$0
Acquisitions . . . . . . . . .
$0
Major Repairs . . . . . . .
$0
Operating Services. . . .
$0
Other Charges. . . . . . .
$0
Does your organization have any outstanding audit issues or findings?
No
If 'Yes' is your organization working with the appropriate governmental agencies to resolve those issues or findings?
What is the entity's public purpose, sought to be achieved through the use of state monies?
Teach For America (TFA) recruits, selects, trains, and professionally develops outstanding leaders who have demonstrated evidence of the values and leadership necessary to expand opportunity and access for all children inside and outside the classroom. TFA supports our educators to advance students' academic and personal growth and helps strengthen low-income schools and districts through the leadership of our network. Our organization is the only national talent provider in the education sector that is uniquely positioned to complete the following components: capacity and expertise to annually recruit, train and support educators (called “corps members”) to teach in low-income schools; a required commitment for corps members to teach for at least two years; a proven track record of providing teachers who exceed expected impact in their classrooms and meet or exceed the expectations of school leaders; and the ability to cultivate excellent leaders committed to transforming our country’s education system for the benefit of our students.
Since 1990, Teach For America has recruited over 70,000 truly exceptional leaders to serve in the education sector and galvanized them for a lifetime of impact. Corps members reach almost 294,000 students annually in over 1,715 high-need public schools across 350 communities. Fueled by their experiences in the classroom, TFA alumni become lifelong leaders in their communities, ¿¿with over 1,400 school principals, 1,040 school systems leaders, 300 elected officials shaping public policy across the country, and thousands more who work across sectors toward profound, enduring change.
In Louisiana, we currently place first- and second-year teachers working in K-12 public schools in Ascension (specifically Donaldsonville), Orleans, East Baton Rouge, Jefferson, Pointe Coupee and St. Bernard Parishes. We prioritize partnerships with schools where at least 80% of students qualify for free and reduced-price lunch. As one of the most diverse sources of new teachers, 53% of TFA corps members identify as people of color and 60% identify as coming from a low-income background. Through research, we know high-quality educators who reflect the identities of their students positively impact them, especially students of color.
Corps members also play a vital role in filling high-need STEM teaching positions. Currently, to¿ enter text.¿51% of the corps is teaching science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subject. In 2024, 94% of principals in Louisiana partner schools reported satisfaction with the performance of our corps members at their school.
Teach For America’s ongoing program in Louisiana is entirely contingent upon our ability to raise funds to support our operations. Given the unique combination of values, services, and results that TFA provides in Louisiana, the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) or appropriations may request up to $2,000,000 in public funding for Teach For America.
In 2023-2024, we leveraged an appropriation of $500,000 by a magnitude of more than eight private dollars to one appropriation dollar by raising over $4.4 million in funds for our operations in Louisiana. The ratio of privately raised dollars to publicly raised dollars (including funding from the state, the federal government, school districts, and charter management organizations) was¿ ¿approximately three to one. Private funds for TFA are disproportionately tied to our urban placements, and TFA depends upon public funds to be able to place in high-needs districts across Louisiana, including rural districts. An increase in state funding allows us to continue this work and attract private donations in the years to come.
What are the goals and objectives for achieving such purpose?
Our education system stands at a pivotal moment of transformation. While challenges in teacher recruitment and retention have emerged, there is a tremendous opportunity to reimagine and strengthen the future of education. The disruptions of recent years have highlighted gaps but have also fueled a renewed sense of urgency and innovation to support student well-being, which has led to academic achievement. Teach For America is seizing this moment to help build an education system that empowers all students, particularly those in low-income communities, to thrive and achieve their fullest potential.
To create lasting change, TFA has set a bold goal: By 2030, we aim to double the number of children reaching key educational milestones, setting them on a path to economic mobility. Achieving this vision requires a systems-wide approach, collaborating with students, educators, and communities. We’ll use proven indicators to measure success and ensure lifelong achievement. In Louisiana, our teams focus on doubling the number of third graders proficient in reading on the LEAP exam.
To achieve this, we’re committed to these key strategies:
Recruit and place a diverse corps of educators in high-need public schools serving low-income populations in Louisiana
Track student achievement metrics for TFA corps members and alumni teachers through an anonymous data-sharing agreement with the LDOE.
Provide Louisiana classrooms with teachers who, on aggregate, achieve higher than average student achievement due to the training and resources TFA provides
Strengthen the broader teaching ecosystem by expanding teacher support to non-TFA educators across the state.
Continue expanding the Ignite tutoring model to support reading growth for kindergarten- to third-grade students.
Examples of these programs include:
Teach For America supports teacher effectiveness and retention for both TFA alumni and non-alumni through programs like the TFA Coaching Fellowship. This fellowship offers leadership development for teachers to coach novice educators, who also receive additional training and support. In a recent survey, 100% of novice teachers reported receiving high-quality coaching, and all fellows recommended the program. Additionally, 100% of fellows stated the fellowship provided them with tools, professional development, and support to deliver impactful coaching. Moreover, 88% of fellows without prior leadership roles gained leadership or teacher-leader opportunities for the 2024-2025 school year.
Also, TFA launched a national high-impact tutoring program called the Ignite Fellowship. This program drives toward our 2030 goal by enabling college students to have a direct and immediate impact through customized rigorous content offered in small group learning opportunities focused on accelerating students’ reading proficiency and fostering belonging for students in grades first through third-grade. TFA launched this program in 2021 and is looking to continue expanding the Ignite Fellowship in Louisiana, given its proven results for students. In Louisiana we saw strong results with school leaders reporting that, of the students who participated in the Ignite Fellowship, 100% grew academically and in their school engagement. In 2024-2025, TFA Ignite in Louisiana has 300 Ignite tutors serving students in East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Orleans, and Pointe Coupee Parishes, and will continue expanding to support more students.
What is the proposed length of time estimated by the entity to accomplish the purpose?
Twelve months: June 2025 through May 2026
If any elected or appointed state official or an immediate family member of such an official is an officer, director, trustee, or employee of the recipient entity who receives compensation or holds any ownership interest therein:
(a) If an elected or appointed state official, the name and address of the official and the office held by such person:
(b) If an immediate family member of an elected or appointed state official, the name and address of such person; the name, address, and office of the official to whom the person is related; and the nature of the relationship:
(c) The percentage of the official's or immediate family member's ownership interest in the recipient entity, if any:
(d) The position, if any, held by the official or immediate family member in the recipient entity:
If the recipient entity has a contract with any elected or appointed state official or an immediate family member of such an official or with the state or any political subdivision of the state:
(a) If the contract is with an elected or appointed state official, provide the name and address of the official and the office held by such person:
There are no known TFA staff members in Louisiana who are contracted with the state of Louisiana, nor any political subdivisions of Louisiana.
(b) If the contract is with an immediate family member of an elected or appointed state official:
Provide the name and address of such person:
There are no known TFA staff members who serve in elected state-wide office; and no known TFA staff members who have immediate family members who are elected to state-wide office. There is one staff member of whom we are aware has an immediate family who works for the Louisiana Department of Corrections. This person is the sibling of a TFA staff member.
Provide the name, address, and office of the official to whom the person is related:
What is the nature of the relationship?
(c) If the contract is with the state or a political subdivision of the state, provide the name and address of the state entity or political subdivision of the state:
Teach For America has received funding by contract through the Louisiana state budget from the Louisiana Department of Education. The LDOE via State Superintendent of Education Dr. Cade Brumley is the primary requester, but historically our grant has been managed through the Division of Teaching and Learning (within LDOE) under the leadership of Dr. Jenna Chiasson. In 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school year, Louisiana state budget funds via appropriation are being administered to TFA via the Louisiana Department of Administration.
(d) The nature of the contract, including a description of the goods or services provided or to be provided pursuant to the contract:
Teach For America will recruit, place, train and support a corps of first and second-year educators in high-need public schools serving low-income populations in Southern Louisiana. Teach For America will also place Ignite fellows in over nine schools that run the high-impact tutoring program for over 600 students in Louisiana.
Contact Information
name:
Alden Howard
address:
865 Fulton Street, Suite 400, New Orleans, LA 70130
phone:
8324924726
fax:
e-mail:
alden.howard@teachforamerica.org
relationship to entity:
Employee