A letter I wrote

So I just finished applying for Teach for America, so I thought I would share what I wrote as my letter of intent for the program…I hope that they like it!

February 4, 2011
Teach for America Selection Committee
Teach for America, Inc.

To whom it may concern,

I am writing this letter of intent as part of the application for a position as a teacher through Teach for America. I am enthusiastic about the possibility of being involved in such an exceptional organization, and for the the opportunity to change the lives of the students with whom I would interact. I hope that you will decide that both my enthusi-asm for the program and my qualifications will allow me such an opportunity. I am a product of my education, and I believe that these children deserve the same opportuni-ties that I was fortunate enough to have.

While there are a myriad of reasons why I would like to join Teach for America, I would like to focus on two that I see as among the most important. Like you, I am not blind to the terrible nature of the achievement gap in our nation’s education system. My (cur-rent) hometown of Minneapolis is a startling example of just such a situation; the best schools are some of the best in the nation, but underneath that lies a startling division of educational quality that is nearly perfectly split along socioeconomic lines. It can of-ten be difficult to see how one can challenge the injustices they see around them, but I know that the ripple effect of generating a positive experience for just a few classrooms can be immeasurable. I would be, well, more than remiss if I didn’t try to make a change, especially when I know I have the tools and the desire. Second, I believe that one of the biggest challenges facing our education system today is there seems to be very little encouragement for getting students to become passionate about learning. For many of these children, it may not be realistic to get them to a four-year university, but I would like the opportunity to instill in them a passion for the learning process which will lead them to success no matter what their future holds.

Thus, my reasons for wanting to join Teach for America are deeply intertwined with my goals if selected, as well as how I would determine my success. I hope to accomplish what the education system has failed to do: to get these students excited to learn, and to help them find something they are passionate about. If I can get a student to find the connection between what happens in the classroom and what happens in their commu-nity, and give them the tools to work for personal and communal change, then I know I was successful. I am more fearful of a population that never learned to learn than one that does poorly on standardized tests. I know that this potential lies in every student.

I hope that this letter helps to illustrate my motivations for applying, and I hope that you see that I am ready to work for these students.

Sincerely yours,
Sean McClay

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