Students to enter Teach For America

Fri, May 9, 2008
Four Valparaiso University students graduating this May have been accepted into Teach For America, a highly-competitive corps of college graduates who pledge to teach in under-resourced public schools for two years.

Entering Teach For America’s intensive training program this summer are Matt Riley, a German and theology major from Indianapolis; Andrea Zappia, a history major from Indianapolis; Cody Shumaker, a history and political science major from Lena, Ill.; and Jenni Gulley, a senior international economics and cultural affairs major from Burlington, Iowa.

Shumaker said the nation’s future rests on ensuring everyone has access to a high-quality education, and he felt a desire to give back to his country.

“Teach For America provides an opportunity to help those who have been forgotten and left out of our system of education,” Shumaker said. “I want to do my part to help our nation continue to grow and provide opportunities for all of our citizens.”

He is slated to become a social science teacher at a secondary school in the Mississippi Delta, a primarily rural area in which its majority African-American school districts suffer from a lack of resources.

Shumaker expects to be challenged as a teacher in an under-resourced school, but says his experiences as president of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity, a member of the Honor Council and in other campus organizations will serve him well.

“I think Valpo has provided me with the strength, both spiritually and emotionally, for my upcoming experiences in the Delta,” he said.

Riley will begin teaching in South Dakota next fall, most likely at an elementary school on a Native American reservation.

“I am interested in youth ministry and Teach For America was a great way to gain experience working in youth education and to help youth who can really benefit from the support,” Riley said.

As a student, Riley said he’s learned about the culture of poverty – a major problem facing many families living on South Dakota reservations – through his volunteer work with the Valparaiso Homeless Coalition.

“I believe that my work in organizations such as Union Board during my time at Valparaiso has allowed me to gain the leadership skills necessary to make changes that will benefit the children I will be teaching,” he said.

Zappia will teach at an elementary school in St. Louis and said being co-captain of Valparaiso’s softball also has been good preparation for leading a classroom.

“As a pitcher, I’ve learned that confidence is the biggest asset anyone can have,” she said. “We also do a lot with goal setting on the team, which is the basis for how Teach For America trains its teachers to teach.”

Dr. Mel Piehl, dean of Valparaiso’s interdisciplinary honors college (Christ College), noted that many college graduates who are accepted into Teach For America become leaders in the field of education.

“It requires a special combination of skills and temperament to succeed in a challenging education environment,” Dr. Piehl said. “Students who are accepted into Teach For America possess those traits and I believe Valparaiso’s graduates will make a tremendous impact on their students.”

In its 18-year history, Teach For America has recruited and trained nearly 17,000 teachers, impacting more than 2.5 million students across the country. Currently, 5,000 corps members are teaching in more than 1,000 schools in 26 regions across the country; and more than 12,000 Teach For America alumni continue working from inside and outside the field of education for the fundamental changes necessary to ensure educational excellence and equity.

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