In my class of 29 high school junior-Algebra students, the student who inspires me the most isn’t the one getting the highest grades or doing college-level math. Rather, it is Brittany, started her junior year at West High School in Denver doing math like an 8th grader.
She struggled with simple fractions, integers and solving for variables. Needless to say, these are concepts students should master when they are finishing middle school.
Every day in class unveils a new challenge for Brittany, requiring hours of extra work to catch up to where she needs to be to graduate from high school and succeed in college, or even the workplace.
Brittany’s story is all too common among students growing up in low-income communities. When kids growing up in poverty enter kindergarten, they are already academically behind their wealthier peers.
This gap in educational opportunity only widens over time. By the fourth grade, they are three grade levels behind and half won’t graduate from high school. Only one in 13 will attend college and for those lacking a college degree, many doors are firmly shut.
As a student at DU, this injustice gnawed at me. Here I had access to a first-class college education, while just a few miles away kids in Denver schools were falling further and further behind. Having tutored math at the nearby middle school and volunteered with the Model UN team at the Denver Center for International Studies, I knew I wanted to find a way to help expand educational opportunity for our 16 million children growing up in poverty.
That’s why I joined Teach For America and became a teacher, to fight this injustice for students like Brittany. My time at DU has proved invaluable in shaping who I am as a professional and a person. The school’s commitment to service learning cemented my commitment to having a positive impact in our highest-need communities.
It provided a launching pad to fulfilling meaningful work. And now, I’m getting the chance to partner with others across classrooms and my community to help a new generation of students have the same opportunities I had.
My students in Denver face many additional challenges of poverty, but they’ve shown me that with dedication and hard work from both me and them, they can overcome almost anything. Brittany has come a long way since the first day of school. We’ve met almost every day during study hall or lunch to work through each new challenge.
Every day I was amazed by her incredible perseverance and positive attitude. I knew the hours of extra support had paid off when Brittany turned to me recently and said, “This is the first time I’ve understood math since elementary school.”
For too long, one’s zip code has defined one’s destiny. But we know that with an all hands-on-deck approach educational inequality is a solvable problem. With the commitment of educators and leaders across sectors, we can give all of our children an excellent education.
While Teach For America corps members start by making a two-year commitment, the experience has a lasting impact. As members of our school community, my fellow corps members and I are working alongside other teachers, parents, administrators and community members in the pursuit of excellence for our students. I can see the difference I am making in the lives of my students and know the transformational impact the experience is having on me.
Knowing that we can close the achievement gap, I simply can’t walk away from this work. As you think about the role you will play in the broader world upon graduation, I hope you will consider joining me in these much-needed efforts.
