Allison Leet, a recent graduate of the College of Education, will be one of 12 UK students serving in the sometimes less attractive classrooms of America's inner cities and rural communities. Twelve students is a UK record for students who have accepted positions with Teach for America (TFA), a national program in which outstanding college graduates commit to teach for two years in disadvantaged urban and rural public schools.

Teach for America places its recruits in the nation’s lowest income communities, both rural and urban, in an effort to close the achievement gap between economically advantaged and disadvantaged children. UK’s Class of 2006 is the largest group of students from the university selected to serve in the prestigious positions.

In addition to Leet, who will be teaching in Philadelphia, UK students selected for Teach for America include: Matthew Douglas of Louisville; Brandy Le’Nae Fisher of Lexington; Brian Johnson of Lexington; Beth Kuhnhein of Edgewood; Jeremiah Lant of Lexington; Michael Lemaster of Salyersville; Jenna McKinney of Bedford; Amanda Mills of Frankfort; William Nash of Glasgow; Silvia Timmerding of Fort Thomas; and Daniel Turner of Kevil.

The 2006 Teach for America corps members will be placed in teaching positions at elementary or secondary schools in one of 22 urban and rural sites across the country served by the program. Teach for America can be found in Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, South Louisiana, Miami, New Mexico/Navajo Reservation, Greater New Orleans, New York City, Eastern North Carolina, St. Louis, Washington, D.C., as well as many other cities and rural areas.

Updated on May 25, 2006 15:38 by the Webmaster - Content by Brad Duncan