ANDERSON — Three Highland High School alumni are among a select group of college graduates who are making a difference in some of the nation’s poorest schools.

The students were selected for the Teach For America corps, a nonprofit group that places graduates who commit to teach for two years in low-income urban and rural schools.

Indiana University graduate Jordan Hird and Loyola University alumna Allison Watkins just concluded their first year with Teach For America, having been selected in 2008. Hird teaches high school English in Philadelphia and Watkins instructs second-graders in Charlotte, N.C.

Anna Finger is preparing to join TFA after her selection this year. She graduated with a sociology degree from Hope College in Holland, Mich., and also will teach in the Charlotte school system. She will leave this weekend for a six-week program in Chicago to prepare her for the classroom.

“I think the two years I spend here will prepare me for a multitude of experiences in life,” Finger said.

“It’s something I can do to help that I want to do,” she said. “I know I’ll gain a lot.”

Hird and Watkins say they already have.

“It’s been an excellent experience, it’s a great organization, and I love what I’m doing,” said Watkins, who holds a degree in business.

“There are teachers in Philadelphia doing great and wonderful things, and Teach For America teachers are part of that,” said Hird, who holds a master’s degree in public affairs. He said that along with teaching, he is also studying to receive his education certification.

The program has its largest corps of teachers in its 20-year history — 4,100 in the 2009 class. That increase comes at a time of rising need for school districts where funding has decreased with the economic downturn.

Those selected for Teach For America most often are not on a traditional teaching career track. They generally have some leadership credentials as well as a solid academic résumé, and competition was especially tough this year with the most applicants ever.

“We see several reasons for the record numbers, including a growing interest in public service, the reputation we have developed for achieving results with underserved students over the past two decades, and an economy that’s empowering young people to think more freely about their career options and how they can make a difference,” said TFA communications director Eva Boster.

Hird recalled a difference he’d made as one of the most memorable of his first year, spending extra time wherever possible working with a high schooler who read at a second-grade level.

“Having this, you might say, rough-and-tumble kid look me in the eye and shake my hand and say, ‘Thank you,’ it’s really those human moments that I see as my greatest accomplishment.”

Finger, Hird and Watkins have more in common than their Highland ties. They all participated in the school’s music program and all are the children of educators.

Finger is the daughter of Highland Principal Mark Finger and Susan Finger, a teacher at East Side Middle School. Hird is the son of Tim Hird, a teacher at East Side Middle School, and Sandy Hird, a teacher at Daleville Elementary. Watkins is the daughter of Doug and Susan Watkins. She teaches at Ebbertt Education Center.

“I’ve said all year that I don’t know how anybody does first-year teaching or Teach for America without coming from a family of teachers,” Hird said. “They are my own focus group and my best asset.”

While most graduates who teach in the program move on to other careers, TFA says more than 60 percent of alumni continue to teach or pursue further study in education after their time in the program ends.

“I went into the program keeping an open mind about teaching and that being a possible future career path,” Watkins said. “I’m not sure what the future holds, but I’m happy teaching.”



Contact Dave Stafford: 648-4250, dave.stafford@heraldbulletin.com



By the numbers

•4,100

Number of college graduates selected for Teach For America this year — the highest number in group’s 20-year history.

•35,000

Number of college graduates who applied for those positions.

•34

Number of rural and urban areas from New England to Hawaii where the Teach For America corps will instruct students in low-income schools.