Just before it begins

Welcome to my new blog! Here I am going to write about my experiences as a Teach For America corps member, moving to a new city, and starting a new career. The main goal of this blog is to keep my friends and family members informed of what I am up to as well as to provide some insight into what Teach For America is like for anyone who cares to read. I will try to keep this blog interesting and regular.

I am in a hotel room on my way up to start the Teach For America experience. Tomorrow I meet the Milwaukee team and begin to find out what this is all really about. 

Maybe you don't know what it is all about either, I'll start with the basics. Teach For America is an organization committed to ending the achievement gap in the United States. The gap is the fact that many children in the U.S. do not receive quality education simply because of where they live, their economic condition, their ethnicity, or some other reason. The facts are appalling, please read more.

Teach for America is also, selfishly, a pretty awesome way to start a professional life. I have to say it is especially awesome for someone with a BA in the humanities graduating in this economic downturn. Read more here. Basically, I have a good job with good pay and benefits, I have a great organization and network backing me, I am making a difference with my efforts in a very real way for very real people who need it.

As for now I am getting ready to be trained into an effective teacher. Tomorrow I start meeting people and getting to know everything, Monday I begin training.

Thanks for reading! Stay in touch,

Emery