The Grand Canyon State is full of natural wonder, vibrant culture, and connected communities. People are drawn to Arizona, not only for the beautiful weather, but for the state's sense of opportunity, spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship, and a willingness to embrace leaders ready to play an active role in their community.
Arizona needs these strong leaders—willing to roll up their sleeves, and work hand-in-hand with students, families, and their communities, to help raise the bar for education achievement across the state. Arizonans deeply value and prioritize education, yet education is in the midst of teacher shortage crisis, with nearly 2,000 teaching positions left unfilled at the beginning of the 2017-2018 school year and another 3,000 positions filled by untrained and under-qualified personnel.
Arizona’s future success and economic vitality is also dependent on the rate of Latino educational attainment. Arizona is on track to be one of the first states to have a “minority” majority population, with Latinos making up the majority of the population by 2028, yet education results for Latino students remain disproportionately low. Arizona Latino eighth graders are 22 points behind their white peers in reading.
Teach For America Phoenix has a proud 25 year history in Phoenix, which is represented in the strength of our community and school partnerships, and the impact that our 112 corps members and over 1,000 alumni have had. Informed and inspired by their students, many alumni choose to teach in high-need schools and communities beyond their two-year commitments. Others lead from many sectors that shape the context and conditions in which schools operate: they are school and district leaders; policy makers; founders of advocacy organizations; social entrepreneurs; and business, philanthropic, and civic leaders working to make change. Our corps members and alumni work relentlessly every day with our communities to ensure the students of Arizona have the opportunities they deserve.