Christian & Small and the Birmingham Business Alliance hosted a special reception at the Birmingham Museum of Art on Thursday, August 25 to celebrate the first Teach For America corps of 16 teachers in Birmingham City Schools.
Dr. Craig Witherspoon, superintendent of the Birmingham City Board of Education, James (J.W.) Carpenter, Executive Director of Teach For America-Alabama, Deborah Alley Smith, Managing Partner with Christian & Small, Myla Choy, General Counsel and Senior Vice President for Regional Development and Public Policy with the Birmingham Business Alliance and Mayor William Bell joined 200 guests to celebrate bringing Teach
“I am proud that Teach For America is now partnering with the Birmingham City Schools,” said J.W. Carpenter, Executive Director of Teach For America Alabama. “This would have been impossible without the support of Superintendent Witherspoon, the Birmingham Board of Education, and many community supporters. It shows what is possible when a diverse group of people, who truly believe that all students can achieve, work together on behalf of those same students.”
In 2010, over 30 corps members were hired in six counties in the rural Black Belt region of Alabama. In 2011, the number of Teach For America corps members hired in Alabama schools reached 78 and includes partnerships in Tuscaloosa and Birmingham.
The partnership between Teach For America and the Birmingham City Schools is one component in reform efforts to close the achievement gap for low-income and ethnic minorities.
