Alumni Carry on DePauw Tradition of Service Through Teach For America

August 30, 2001

August 30, 2001, Greencastle, Ind. - Seven spring graduates of DePauw University, or more than 1% of the Class of 2001, are beginning their careers with a two-year commitment to improve the lives of America's most disadvantaged students. They've joined two members of the Class of 2000 in Teach For America, which describes itself as “a national corps of outstanding and diverse recent college graduates of all academic majors who commit two years to teach in urban and rural public schools.” Education Week calls it “a private, Peace Corps-style program ... (that) is channeling a wealth of talent, energy, and creativity into educational leadership that might otherwise have wound up in such fields as medicine, law or business.”

Current members of the corps are 2001 DePauw graduates Melissa Greives, Madeleine Shephard, Aaron Ellis, Brian Garrison, James M. Miller, Allison Moen and Stephen Simmons. Laura Jones and Justin Wallace, who graduated from DePauw in 2000, are in their second year of service with Teach for America.

“DePauw is very proud of the commitments these young alumni have made,” said DePauw President Robert G. Bottoms. “Our goal is to produce graduates who go into the world intending to make it a better place. Teach For America, and the positive things it does for American children who are most in need of hope, embodies the principle of service to others that is at the core of a DePauw liberal arts degree.”

Teach For America was founded in 1990, and ten other DePauw graduates have fulfilled their two year service commitments and are alumni of the service corps. They include: Matthew Dean ‘91, Christopher Gilbert ‘91, Caroline (Griffith) Myers ‘92, Dana Abplanalp ‘95, Julie (McVey) Farrar ‘95, Carla Gasbarra ‘95, Elisa Villanueva ‘98, Klarysa Benge ‘99, Jim Furman ‘99 and Nicole Johnson ‘99.

On its Web site, Teach For America says it focuses “the leadership and passion of some of our nation's most talented graduating seniors on expanding educational opportunity for our nation's most disadvantaged students. During their two-year commitments, corps members have a powerful impact on their students' lives and on the schools in which they teach. After their two years, Teach For America alumni bring their unique perspective and experience to every sector of professional life, where they remain lifelong advocates for making an excellent education available to all children.”

Current DePauw students Craig Greiwe and Brady Jones serve as campus coordinators for Teach For America. They can be contacted via e-mail by clicking here. You can visit the organization's website here.

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