Lance Tackett is executive director of Teach For America Oklahoma. He oversees the academic trajectories of 22,000 students through 44 full-time staff members who manage 340 corps members across 75 school sites in Tulsa and Oklahoma City. He joined TFA as a Charlotte, N.C., corps member in2006. Tackett holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Santa Barbara and a master’s degree in educational administration, curriculum and supervision from the University of Oklahoma. CORY YOUNG/Tulsa World
1. Who has TFA partnered with in the
business community over its last four
years?
Four of Oklahoma’s five Fortune
500 companies — Williams Cos.,
OG&E, Chesapeake Energy and
Devon Energy — have been lead
corporate supporters of Teach For
America’s work since we came to
Tulsa and, later, to Oklahoma City.
With so much of Oklahoma’s
economy relying on industries
where math and science are vital
skills, companies such as Spirit
AeroSystems and Bank of Oklahoma
have been important partners
in supporting our Science, Technology,
Engineering and Math (STEM)
initiatives.
2. What is the connection between
education in low-income, low-scoring
communities and the economy in
general?
Educational attainment has a
clear and powerful bearing on
the economic health of our communities.
An adult with only a
high school degree is four times as
likely to live in poverty as a college
graduate, and those without a GED
or high school diploma are almost
seven times more likely.
When high school dropout rates
persist, students don’t gain the
skills necessary to be successful
inside and outside of the classroom.
According to the Alliance
for Excellent Education, more than
14,000 students did not graduate
from high school in Oklahoma in
2011. This has moral, social and
economic implications for children
and families as well as our broader
state.
Education is a key lever to changing
this reality.
3. What should be the most important
focus in improving education?
The United States currently
ranks 25th in math and 17th in
science among developed nations.
TFA recognizes the urgent need to
improve math and science education
to ensure our country and
Oklahoma’s continued innovation
and success. We can make great
strides in student outcomes by
recruiting teachers with STEMrelated (
Science, Technology, Engineering
and Math) backgrounds
and providing targeted supports to
improve educator quality in STEM
subjects. To this end, we recruit,
train and support teachers to
become effective leaders in STEM
education in under-resourced urban
and rural communities.
4. Your ninth-graders at West Charlotte
High School in North Carolina
achieved two years’ worth of
academic gains in one year. How did this
happen, and how were those students
helped over the long haul?
The academic gains I saw with
my own students at West Charlotte
High School are just one example
of the incredible student potential
that exists in classrooms nationwide
and right here in Oklahoma.
Over time, we’ve studied our
most effective teachers to identify
what they do to succeed in their
classrooms and have built a training
and support program founded in
principles that include high expectations,
planning and executing
purposefully, building relationships
with families and communities,
investing kids in their goals, and
constant reflection.
5. Do you see a need for some business
people to give back by volunteering
for Teach for America?
It’s clear that the business community
cares deeply about education
in our state.
Their human and fiscal investments
help promote the importance
of education and increase
momentum behind the movement
to end educational inequity for our
students in low-income communities.
This year, business leaders can
lend their talent and time participating
in a STEM outreach initiative
and girl’s empowerment program.
Through our STEM program,
we are partnering with business
professionals to provide students
with real-world applications of
math and science concepts.
5 Questions
1: You've moved from the construction industry with Flintco to power generation with Clifford. What is the learning curve in your new job?
1 How has the Girl Scout program evolved over the years, and what does it offer today?
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