More than 1 path to the classroom

After a heated debate, the San Francisco Unified school board voted earlier this month to continue its financial support for schools interested in hiring diverse, innovative and wellprepared educators through Teach for America.

I am thrilled the school board is supporting this vital partnership. The divisive nature of the debate, however, revealed many misconceptions about Teach for America-recruited teachers. It also distracted from the larger issue of making sure we have excellent teachers in every San Francisco classroom, especially considering the projected 500 teacher vacancies next year.

Teach for America teachers are credentialed through an alternative route in partnership with the district and Loyola Marymount University. They are highly qualified under federal and state law.

Teachers recruited and trained by Teach for America seek positions at hard- to- staff schools — ones in communities struggling with poverty where students are being left behind. They are disproportionately taking on subjects where the shortage of teachers is most critical, such as math, science and bilingual instruction.

Nearly 70 percent of Teach for America- recruited teachers represent communities of color, and nearly half come from low- income backgrounds, which is more than twice as diverse as the local teaching population and more closely resembles the students in our public schools. In fact, many are teaching in the very communities in which they grew up.

At the school board meeting, there was much concern over the idea of hiring teachers who did not take a more traditional path to the classroom. The truth is, traditional credentialing programs do not guarantee success. The support teachers receive in the classroom and the opportunities teachers have to learn, grow and contribute over time will determine both their success and retention regardless of their pathway.

A study by the San Francisco Unified School District revealed Teach for America-recruited teachers had a stronger impact on student learning and growth than not only other first- year teachers, but also veteran teachers.

Teach for America teachers are often criticized for leaving the profession after their twoyear program. The truth is, Teach for America teachers in San Francisco return to the classroom for their second and third year at similar rates to teachers who come to the district through more traditional credentialing programs.

We can continue to attack teachers entering the profession through this route, or we can work together to both grow the size and diversity of the people interested in teaching and address the root causes of teacher turnover at highpoverty schools.

National surveys show teachers want to be held accountable but not to singular or arbitrary evaluations that are not geared toward supporting their professional development. They want compensation that reflects the effect they have in the classroom and makes it possible to support a family in expensive places like the Bay Area. They want diverse entry points and career pathways in the profession that recognize the realities of a modern workforce in which people will almost certainly not choose a single career for their lifetime at age 22.

Teach for America alone will not solve the teacher shortage crisis — and that is not our mission — but we have learned a lot about what it takes to recruit the diverse and high- quality people we need in our classrooms and we want to be part of the solution. It’s time to put adult interests and tired ideological debates aside and work together in the best interests of our students.