March 19, 2010
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Three University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) students have been selected for the 2010-2011 Teach for America corps, and one of them will be among the first corps members ever assigned to serve in Alabama's public schools.
Teach for America is a highly competitive national program that recruits outstanding college graduates to teach for two years in schools in under-served communities.
In February, the organization announced that it would expand the program to Alabama. UAB senior Joshua Carpenter, 22, of Florence, will be among 30 top college graduates assigned to teach in Alabama's highest need school districts starting this fall. Carpenter, an accounting and economics major, will teach high-school English in Alabama's Black Belt. He will enter an intensive training institute before beginning his assignment.
"Few 22-year-olds are blessed with the opportunity to come out of college and walk into a job they are ecstatic about," says Carpenter who will graduate from UAB in May. "Simply put, I want to wake up every day feeling proud about what I'm doing and knowing that I'm making a difference in people's lives."
Carpenter is a student in the University Honors Program and the School of Business Honors Program. When his teaching assignment ends, Carpenter says he plans to pursue a graduate degree in education or law in preparation for a career in public service.
UAB senior Patty Wang, 21, of Huntsville, and graduate student Jade Delisle, 23, of Glen Iris, will join Carpenter in the Teach for America corps.
Wang, a psychology major, also is a student in the University Honors Program. After graduating from UAB in May, she will spend two years teaching high-school science on or near an Indian reservation in northwest New Mexico. After her assignment ends, Wang says she plans to enter medical school.
"I realize that a lot of people don't get to have the same educational opportunities that I have had," says Wang. "My parents moved here from Asia, and it opened up so many doors in my life that otherwise would have been closed. I want to try and help others through Teach for America because I believe in the liberating power of education."
Delisle is a graduate student in anthropology. She will work as a special-education teacher for the Atlanta Public School system.
"I wanted to work with Teach for America because I'm interested in working with populations that have been marginalized," Delisle says, "and I know that there is a high turnover among special-education teachers in urban schools."
Delisle graduated cum laude from UAB in 2008 with a degree in criminal justice. She says she plans to eventually pursue a doctoral degree, become a classroom teacher and develop outreach programs that will bring science education to the public.
About UAB
Known for its innovative and interdisciplinary approach to education at both the graduate and undergraduate levels, UAB is an internationally renowned research university and academic medical center. UAB has been named to the President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for exemplary service to America's communities. Click here to learn more about applying to UAB.