UP seniors selected for Teach For America

By Rachel McIntosh, Staff Writer -- mcintosh14@up.edu

Three UP seniors have been selected for Teach For America, which is reporting its most selective year ever, with an acceptance rate barely above 10 percent. Seniors Megan Osborn, Elle Hoxworth and Thomas Payne are among 4,500 chosen out of 46,000 applicants nationwide

Teach For America, established in 1989, recruits college graduates from all majors to teach for two years in low-income schools in rural and urban districts.

Osborn, a sociology major, will teach in the Mississippi Delta. Hoxworth, a sociology and political science double major, will be in inner-city Chicago and Payne, elementary education major, will be a special education teacher for the Phoenix Corp.

There are three stages to the process: a written application, a phone interview and an all-day interview, where finalists teach a five-minute lesson to the board of recruits and fellow applicants.

"The whole time I'm in the interview I am meeting all these wonderful people, and I think, ‘What in the hell distinguishes me from all these people?'" Osborn said. "It's really overwhelming."

Applicants must demonstrate strong leadership ability and enthusiasm for educational reform to teach for two years in low-income schools in rural or urban districts, with the goal of improving test scores and learning outcomes.

Osborn, Payne and Hoxworth have been involved in many service and leadership positions at UP.

Osborn is the Opinions Editor of The Beacon, a member of the Debate team and an intern with the Multnomah County District Attorney's office. She has also been a Boys and Girls Club of America counselor and a writing assistant in the Integrated Writing Program on campus.

Hoxworth was an intern for Western Education Advocacy and Empowerment Program in Kenya, coordinator of the Rural Plunge through the Moreau Center, collegiate challenge coordinator for Habitat for Humanity and was part of the East Africa Initiative service learning program. She is also involved in the University of Portland Strategic Planning Committee for Service and Leadership and is an Entrepreneurial Scholar.

Payne is a student teacher at Boise-Eliot Elementary school. He has held many leadership positions on campus including Quad Retreat team leader, orientation assistant, tutor for Kateri Park Homework Club and the Boise-Eliot College Visits coordinator and leader.

"The program is very selective, so I put a great deal of effort into reflecting my passion for equity and drive to make a difference in my application materials," Payne said. "Still, the most stressful part of the process was waiting for my decision following the final interview."

Teach For America places an emphasis on finding teachers capable of closing the achievement gap for students in impoverished areas.

"They are looking for people who can teach, but much more than that, they are looking for leaders who can inspire," Osborn said. "The place I'm going, less than 15 percent of the students are at grade level. How can kids be that far behind and deprived?"

For both students, the transitions into different regions and cultures will be a new experience.

"For me it was more for understanding the opportunities I have and that those opportunities are not there for a majority of students in America," Hoxworth said.

Although some criticize the program because of the low retention rate for recruits, 72 percent of the recruits stay in education in some form after their two years and 28 percent remain teachers.

"I'm interested in working long-term in educational policy and seeing how things work on the ground before I am able to affect change," Hoxworth said.

Osborn is excited to start on this new adventure, but is aware of the challenges that await her.

"I will definitely be a fish out of water," Osborn said. "I am starting thinking about all the things I am going to miss. I don't think they are going to have an organic food section, and the fried food … I am going to have to watch that. But I have a mission: to change things around and shake things up."