Teach For America - Kansas City

Back to School = Back to School Supplies! Crossroads Hotel spent their summer collecting school supply donations from their staff to support Teach For America Kansas City teachers! Last week, we had the privilege of donating those supplies to accelerate teachers ! THANK YOU for your partnership in setting teachers up for success this school year!

Calling all Alumni teachers who want to continue to develop their skills! TFA just launched a menu of programs of free PD. Check them out in the Teach For America Alumni Hub: https://alumni.teachforamerica.org/blog/2024/08/14/alumni-teacher-offerings/

Know someone who might be interested? Send them this post!

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT! 💡 Check out our TFAKC alumni collaborating to make things happen for teachers in Kansas City! (TFAKC '17), Program Specialist and leader of the Teach to Lead program worked with (TFAKC '17), Director of Corporate Partnerships to secure 75 classroom kits for new teachers including bulletin boards, scissors, name plates, and more to help ensure their classrooms were ready to go for students on day 1! Thank you to the folks at Pitney Bowes for the donations!

Know of more TFAKC alumni doing cool things? Send us a DM! We would love to share.

Last week hosted the annual Excellence in Education Awards, celebrating star educators and schools across our city! We are so proud of the Teach For America Kansas City alumni who were honored at the Royals Stadium! Join us in celebrating these winners in the comments below:
⭐ Chelsea Millar: Star Administrator Award Winner - TFAKC '10 -
⭐ Ellen Jorgenson: Start Teacher Award Winner - TFAKC Green Fellow '23 -
⭐ Erin Opara: Star Administrator Award Winner - TFAKC '15 & Green Fellow '21 -
⭐ Hillary Kosnac: Star Teacher Award Winner - TFAKC '08 -
⭐ Tricia DeGraff: Star Leader Award Winner - TFA Houston '97 -
⭐ Carver Dual Language School: Star Team Award (school led by alumni Andrew Murphey - TFAKC '14)
⭐ Garfield Elementary School Fifth Grade Team: Star Team Award (including Noelle Campo - TFAKC '18 & Green Fellow '21 and school led by alums Lauren Amicone - TFAKC '15 and Chelsea Millar TFAKC '10)

Accelerate's year is up and running at ! KCIA's new teachers and their school-based mentors kicked the year off by establishing Community Agreements for the professional learning community they'll engage with throughout the year. Accelerate provides monthly whole-group development to its cohorts of beginning teachers, and we can't wait to see these KCIA teachers live out these norms in those spaces.

After an awesome New Teach Orientation, our TFAKC Accelerate team got to spend time building community and teacher skill with the teachers in the Teach to Lead Program in partnership with Kansas City Public Schools and alumni leader ! We can't wait to see each of these teachers in their classrooms so soon!

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Our TFAKC Accelerate Team has had a busy week! On Monday we partnered with and .kc to kick off the school year with all new teachers at their New Teacher Training! Teachers engaged in sessions on culturally responsive teaching, the history of education in Kansas City, and more!

Photos by TFAKC '15 Alumni:

Last couple days to sign up for our Back to School Happy Hour happening Wednesday, August 7th at Boulevard! Register at the link in our bio!

We acknowledge Juneteenth to celebrate the emancipation of enslaved Black people in America, learn about this group’s history, and imagine an even bolder future for all Black children and youth. Join us in celebrating by dropping your favorite black owned businesses to support today and every day!

Our Corps Members and Green Fellows aren't the only ones completing their programs this year! Check out the accomplishments of our Accelerate participants celebrated a few weeks ago!

We had a wonderful afternoon celebrating teachers at Academie Lafayette during our end of the year party. Teachers who completed their BTAP requirements received a certificate of completion.

The Accelerate program at TFA KC provides BTAP training to schools across the city, and we are thrilled with the growth this program has seen over the past few years.

One month since we celebrated our incredible 2022 Corps Members and Green Fellows! We can't wait to see how this group continues to make waves in Kansas City and beyond. Welcome to Alumnihood!

Thanks to all of our vendors for helping us make this special night happen:
📷 .el.photography
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Want to connect with the TFAKC network and welcome our incoming 2024 Kansas City Corps Members? Click the link in our bio (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdF3hSm6Ok6LMrt2AiN1aJUlDCVS3rbkOLwWp6Ip2gl_rqy6A/viewform?usp=sf_link) to sign up to attend an event during our Summer Series! Events include happy hours, trivia, small group learning, opportunities to mentor, and more!

We loved celebrating our newest TFAKC Alumni and Green Fellows on Friday!! Can’t wait to share so many more highlights from the event in the coming weeks! In the meantime, stay connected with us and help us welcome our new corps members this summer! Link in our bio to sign up for upcoming events!

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! We are so grateful for our teachers and all they do for kids in KC!

Our local alumni are incredible! Kellee Ransom (Kansas City '08) and her students were recently visited by the Kansas City Royals Foundation and Slugger! Kellee's fourth graders will be partnering up with their reading champion, Bobby Whitt Jr., all year long to support reading and literacy efforts in Kellee's classroom as a part of her work with the Royals Literacy League!

We have another favorite teacher among us! Current first year corps member, Jacquinta Nelson was nominated for Best Educator of the Year for The Kansas City Peoples Choice Awards! You can show her your support by voting at KCPCAwards.com

Check out this alumni!! Jeremiah Kim (Kansas City ‘18) has entered into America’s Favorite Teacher competition! Want to show your support? Each participant gets one free vote per day. Vote here: https://americasfavteacher.org/2024/jeremiah-kim (in our bio)!

You're Invited! Mark your calendars for May 10th! We would love to invite our network to join us in celebrating our 2022 Corps Members and Green Fellows as they graduate from their respective programs! RSVP at the link here: https://bit.ly/TFAKCInduction24 (in our bio) by Friday to join us!

Check out these Teach For America Alumni!

The KCPS Education Foundation recently surprised Green Fellows Christina Melecio and Scott Ferrell-Garcia with grants for their classrooms!

Christina received $700 to fund her grade level community service project at Trailwoods Elementary, during which her first graders will be in charge of lollipop sales in order to raise money for new recess equipment for the playgrounds. Christina is not only offering students a chance to learn through service, she has also aligned the project to money standards for first grade math.

Scott received $500 for his theater classes at East High School. Scott plans to use the money to hire a choreographer to work directly with students on a combination, work to make it better, and then perform it.

Congratulations to both Christina and Scott; we are so proud of the ways in which they have gone above and beyond to provide creative learning experiences to their students!

Photos:

March is — a time to highlight and encourage
the study of women and their impact on history and society. We celebrate the women in and out of the classroom who are transforming the field of education to ensure every child has access to an excellent and equitable education. Looking for resources? Check out this link: https://bit.ly/TFAMOWHM

Last weekend our Corps Members, Green Fellows, and community leaders gathered together for a day of learning, collaboration, and connection! We are always so energized by our network when we get together! Thank you to everyone who joined us!

The LEE Public Policy Fellowship is now accepting applicants! Apply by March 18th to be considered for this opportunity! Application at this link: https://lee.smapply.us/prog/2024-25_public_policy_fellowship_application/ also in our bio!

This week is AmeriCorps Week! This week is all about celebrating the millions of AmeriCorps members and Alumni who have made a difference in our communities for the last 30 years! Thank you to our current Corps Members who are serving the Kansas City community daily. Check out our story for opportunities to celebrate!

UPCOMING DEADLINE: Teach For America (TFA) seeks equity-minded leaders to teach in highest-need schools throughout the country. TFA accepts ALL academic majors for this 2 year commitment of serving low-income communities and ensuring students get the high-level, opportunistic, equitable education they deserve. You'd be joining a network of over 65,000 alumni who continue to work towards changes they wish to see in education. 60% of those alumni still actively work in schools: as teachers, principals, and the founders of their own schools. The other 40% of our alumni step into sectors where strong advocacy is needed for low-income communities; these sectors include but are not limited to: law, policy, medicine, government, business, non-profits, and technology & innovation. Interested in checking out an application?! Click here and apply by Friday, March 15th: https://lnkd.in/emZV7FmV

We are convening our corps members, green fellows, and alumni for a day of connection, community, and learning! Register at the link in bio to join us!!

Alumni Spotlight Incoming! Two Teach For America Kansas City 2015 Alumni are partnering to address the mental health crisis among students in KC.

Emily Thorpe (TFAKC '15) () is the Manager, School Health Initiatives at Children’s Mercy Kansas City and is leading the development and initiation of a new school-based behavioral health pilot program in Center School District. After she spent time listening and leaning into conversations with school district staff, restorative practices and supports to strengthen and align programs rose to the top of the list of things to prioritize for the district. Enter Sarah Eblen (TFAKC '15) (), co-founder of RestorED (). The pilot program at Center, in part, will incorporate education on and, implementation of, restorative practice training with the expertise of RestorED. Specifically, the program will provide students and staff with training in unique skills aimed at strengthening student-to-student and teacher-to-student relationships, increasing empathy and personal accountability, and fostering community. Extended support will also be provided to students’ families.

We are so proud of these two for all their hard work leading up to this partnership and love to see our alumni continuing to make significant contributions to educational equity.

Read more about the program and partnership here: https://bit.ly/3SkLUcE

LEE's Policy and Advocacy Summer Fellowship Application is due Wednesday, January 31!

This full-time leadership development program is for LEE members interested in pursuing careers in policy, advocacy, and organizing in the future and want to gain hands-on experience over the summer. Summer Fellows spend 8 weeks working full-time with a host organization while participating in leadership development programming to strengthen understanding of the policymaking process and solidify pathways into full-time policy, advocacy or organizing work.

To learn more, first register for a LEE account and then go to: Policy and Advocacy Summer Fellowship here: Application: https://bit.ly/496vyeq

Today, we pay tribute to a visionary leader whose words continue to lead us toward a brighter future. Martin Luther King Jr.’s timeless wisdom reminds us of the profound impact education can have on individuals and society.
Let’s commit to building a world where everyone has access to a fulfilling education. Follow this link for ideas to celebrate and honor MLK’s legacy on this day of service: https://bit.ly/3XlKi3p