Teach for America Selects Two UA Students for Fellowship

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Teach for America has selected two students from The University of Alabama for its Rising Leaders Fellowship, which is designed to mobilize a diverse cohort of student leaders in direct action to address educational inequity.

The students, Aaron Brazelton, a sophomore from Madison, Ala., and Lena Oshinskie, a senior from  Highland Park, N.J., were among 100 students selected from some 60 colleges and universities nationwide for the 12 month fellowship. Selection was based on students’ outstanding leadership potential and a desire to expand educational opportunity.

The fellowship, now in its second year, aims to build fellows’ understanding of educational inequity and support their direct impact on the issue. Each fellow designs and leads a project that will measurably impact educational opportunities in their community or on their campus.

The 2013 fellowship class recently participated in the Rising Leaders Summit in Washington, D.C., where they shared their experiences and insights, learned from leaders in the field and planned and developed their projects. They will work with mentors, including Teach for America staff members, corps members and alumni, to complete their projects

“It’s inspiring to witness the fellows channeling their passion for educational equity into the creation of ambitious plans to impact their communities,” said Ahnna Smith, executive director of Teach for America, D.C. Region.

Teach For America works in partnership with communities to expand educational opportunity for children facing the challenges of poverty. Founded in 1990, Teach for America recruits and develops a diverse corps of outstanding individuals of all academic disciplines to commit two years to teach in high-need schools and become lifelong leaders in the movement to end educational inequity. This fall, 11,000 corps members will teach in 48 urban and rural regions across the country, while 32,000 alumni work across sectors to ensure that all children have access to an excellent education. For more information, visitwww.teachforamerica.org.