TFA teacher gets angry response from Ackerman
by thenotebook on Jan 26 2011
by Celeste Lavin
When the young teacher attending a panel discussion about men of color and education stood up to tell Superintendent Arlene Ackerman that the School District’s constant bureaucratic requirements impeded her ability to teach, she hardly expected what happened next.
Ackerman blew up at her and, in essence, told her to quit.
“What we need are teachers who don’t make excuses,” said Ackerman. “I don’t want to hear about bureaucracy. We have always had bureaucracies…. We are looking for people who say ‘I can teach a rock to read.’… If it is not the right place for you then you should find another place to go.”
The audience of about 400 people was stunned.
The event, at the University of Pennsylvania, was hosted by Teach for America