'Troops to Teachers' Puts Retired Military Where They Make a Difference

Complaints about a system in crisis, citing teacher shortages and low test scores, have resounded through the nation's schools like a war cry. Some sources estimate that during the next decade, 2 million new teachers will be needed. However, according to C. Emily Feistritzer, president of the National Center for Education Information, the cries about shortages are mere "scare mongering." Feistritzer states, "To claim that there is a teacher shortage is simply wrong--there isn't one." The National Education Association reported that 2.2 million worked as teachers in the academic year 1995-96, and only 2.1% of those were teaching for the first time.

Surprisingly, when considering test scores for Americans as a whole, our kids rank right at the top in academic ability when compared to children of other nations. For example, American 4th graders are surpassed only by Koreans in their knowledge of the sciences.

The crisis in education today is not that we will run out of teachers, or turn out graduates who fail in comparison to our overseas neighbors. The desperation is, according to President George W. Bush, that nearly 70 percent of 4th graders in our poorest schools cannot read at all. Bush calls this the "achievement gap." Simply put, inner-city kids, where student bodies are composed of a higher percentage of minority and disadvantaged youth--are way behind.

A Los Angeles Times survey of school test scores ranked Whitney High School in Cerritos, an affluent L.A. suburb, as the number one school in L.A. county. 97% of Whitney's students read at above-average levels, and every single student at Whitney performs above average in math. 2% of the students enrolled at Whitney are African-American.

Coming in close to dead last, ranking at 157 out of 171 schools, is Crenshaw High School in downtown L.A. Only 12% of Crenshaw's students read at above-average levels and 17% perform at above-average levels in math. At Crenshaw, a whopping 77% of the student body is African-American. At Locke Senior High School, also in inner city L.A., only 5% - 9% of students can read and do math at above-average levels. The student body at Locke is 41% African-American.

What are the reasons for the yawning gaps between affluent and inner city schools? Why are minority youth being left behind? The reasons are complex but some differences are clear--inner city schools have a lower percentage of credentialed teachers, lower parent involvement, lower family incomes, and a higher incidence of violence.

Calling his education plan "No Child Left Behind," Bush hopes to close the achievement gap and ensure that every disadvantaged child can read by 3rd grade. Bush's plan calls for higher standards, accountability through standardized testing, and will give failing schools a finite period to change.

Clearly, qualified teachers who have the grit to face the challenges of closing the education gap are urgently needed. Who makes a good teacher? Credentials are only part of the picture--our best teachers are individuals like Arthur Moore--driven by a deep desire to work with young people, and an intense appreciation of the value of education in society.

How can an exemplary individual like Moore get in front of that classroom full of students who so desperately need him? 'Troops to Teachers' (TTT) is one program that answers that question. Receiving $3 million dollars from the federal government to keep afloat for fiscal year 2001, which Bush would like to increase to $30 million, Troops to Teachers has placed almost 4,000 ex-military personnel in teaching posts since its inception in 1994. TTT enables veterans to transition to teaching by providing stipends that pay for education and relocation.

Downsizing of military ranks became the motivation for a marriage made in heaven. TTT brilliantly matches veterans who need new careers, with an education system that needs teachers who can greet the dawn with military muster, and who are also willing to work in the inner city. The brainchild of the Defense Activity for Non- Traditional Support (DANTES), a Department of Defense (DoD) agency, Troops to Teachers was mapped out in a 1993 Defense Authorization Bill. The program has shown that veterans, for a variety of reasons, make teachers who are rated by school administrators as "among the best."

As military personnel tend to be composed of a high percentage of minority members, who are also 90 percent male, Troops to Teachers serves as a conduit for individuals whose diversity adds healthy vigor to an anemic institution. This increases the presence of male role models in a system where currently less than 26 percent of teachers are male. Additionally, 29 percent of TTT teachers are from minority or ethnic groups, again broadening the spectrum in a system where at present only 10 percent are people of color.

TTT teachers also bring more emphasis on the sciences, with more individuals capable of teaching subjects like math, biology, chemistry and physics. Interestingly, Troops to Teachers personnel have a higher degree of willingness to work with special education, emotionally disturbed, and inner-city populations. One in four TTT teachers is currently teaching in an inner-city environment, while only 16 percent of public school teachers are willing to take on those challenges. TTT teachers are also overwhelmingly in favor of higher standards for students and stricter graduation requirements, the kind of accountability that Bush hopes will close the education gap.

The Troops to Teachers program has been a huge success in bringing dedicated, mature and experienced individuals into classrooms who have proven not only to be effective teachers, but excellent role models for students. Establishing a solid reputation as competent and effective, TTT personnel also bring valuable life experience to the classroom. Numerous TTT alumni have received "outstanding teacher" awards.

"Military personnel, when they're not fighting wars, they teach each other," explains Bill Perry, a retired middle school teacher. "That's the kind of people we're dealing with--45-year-old people who know how to teach 18- or 19-year olds coming out of high school." Sam Swofford, the executive director of the California State Commission on Teacher Credentialing, noted that the life experience gained by veterans is highly valued in the classroom. "There's a sense of commitment that's instilled in them, when they come out, that is part of their internal mechanism for the way they live," says Swofford. "They make wonderful teachers."

Teachers who came through the TTT program cited "being sensitive to the learning abilities of others" and "teaching/training to objectives amidst disruption," as well as speaking in front of large groups, as three aspects of the military experience that were the most valuable to them as teachers.

As Moore explains, "There are a lot of people who would make excellent teachers but are discouraged by the bureaucracy of the certification process. Troops to Teachers is an excellent way to tap their potential by lowering the barriers." Moore saw a flyer describing TTT while on duty in Germany. "I knew this was the opportunity I had been looking for," he says. Moore received expert guidance to help him navigate the teacher certification process and a $5 thousand dollar stipend. The stipend helped defray the expense of moving his family from Colorado to Baltimore and to pay for the final courses needed for his teacher certificate. "Without this program, I wonder whether I would be standing before you today halfway through my fifth year as a teacher," stated Moore when he introduced President Clinton at the Quality Teachers for America's Future conference in Washington, D.C. on January 21, 1999.

Troops to Teachers recommends that if you think teaching might be the way you are meant to serve others, the best way to know for sure is to gain some practical experience. Volunteer in a public school at the grade level and subject area you think you want to teach and get in the trenches with kids. Starting teachers are paid an average wage of $25,012.00 with the lowest pay being $18,889.00 in North Dakota, and the highest $32,502.00 in Arkansas.

Military and Coast Guard personnel, veterans, and reserve component personnel are eligible for assistance in the transition to teaching through TTT. Those interested in an academic teaching position must have at least a bachelor's degree from an accredited college. Those without a bachelor's degree can be considered for vocational/technical subjects (e.g., electronics, computer, construction trades etc).

Through offices in 24 states, TTT assists aspiring teachers with a nationwide database referral system that connects school districts with new teacher recruits. TTT also offers school districts the ability to post their vacancies directly on their home web page, where applicants can also post a personal mini-resume. Troops to Teachers advises military personnel who have a couple of years to go before separating from their current career, that "now is the time to get started." Many certification programs can take as long as two years to complete. "Plan ahead and start now!" they advise. The Troops to Teachers web site offers a wealth of information to help applicants do just that.

During his campaign for the White House, President Bush indicated a desire to increase funding for the Troops to Teachers program, from $2.4 to $30 million. Still working toward that goal, President Bush recently promised to veto the H.R. 1995 - Teacher Empowerment Act, because as written, the bill "creates a block grant that fails to guarantee that any funding will be used for hiring new teachers to reduce class size." One of the main reasons he considers the bill as flawed is because it "fails to expand the Troops to Teachers program and restricts the Administration's flexibility to fund the program."

"Over the past seven years I have started each new school year off with great anticipation. My students greet me with skepticism and reservations. Over the next 10 months I can become either a positive or negative force in their progress toward adulthood. So, I do not take this responsibility lightly. During these 10 months we laugh together, cry together, eat and play together. I will, for some, become that father figure they have never had. For others I might be the only person to offer a kind word. Through it all they will learn. When I see the light go on, in a young person's eyes, I know what I am doing is worth all the hard work, low pay, and thankless days. This to me is what being a teacher is all about."

"It's our responsibility to bring integrity and honor back to the profession. Until we do this there will be many who will bypass teaching for more 'satisfying' careers. Our children deserve dedicated and caring teachers to help shape their future. I think we have turned the corner ... pride is coming back to the classroom. Our future really looks bright."

"As an African American male teaching in the inner city, I find that I can have a positive effect on children. Many of the young people whom I have had the pleasure to work with come from single-family households where they don't get the opportunity to see men being successful. I take this role seriously. I find that many days are spent making sure that the children's well being is taken care of before I can get to the academics. My students find it hard to trust anyone, so developing a relationship with them is extremely important. Once this is accomplished, the schoolwork can begin. Working in the Baltimore City School system has taught me that teaching is not just about book knowledge --it's about life knowledge as well. I must strive to understand what their lives are like on the street. What it's like to go to bed hungry, or not to be able to sleep in a bed at all. We then expect these young people to step into a classroom and pay attention to all the things we want to teach them. They are not ready to learn, it's my job to get them ready. I will use every trick in the book to make it happen. They deserve this from me and I will not let them down."

Moore finds that the classroom is a continuing route to personal growth. "I love my students," he says. "They challenge me every day to be the best that I can be."

For More Information about Troops to Teachers:
Visit the Troops to Teachers website at: http://www.voled.doded.mil/dantes/ttt/index2.htm; or e-mail TTT at ttt@voled.doded.mil. Toll free number: 800/231-6242.