Classroom Soldiers Face Battle
President Clinton has thrown his support behind a unique educational program called Troops to Teachers. Whether Congress will back him up is another question.
It's an academic solution that fills the needs of both students and military veterans. Former Master Sergeant Eden Reyes is one of thousands of retired soldiers taking part in the federally funded program, which offers tuition aid in return for a commitment to teach in selected districts. "They said to me, if you commit five years to teaching in certain areas we will help you get your credentials, your teaching certificate," Reyes says.
The program was a perfect fit. At a time when the Defense Department needed to downsize, Troops to Teachers offered departing military personnel up to $5,000 for training. Almost 3,000 took advantage of the opportunity. For Reyes, once a high school dropout, it meant having a future.
It also gave a future to thousands of underprivileged and minority kids by fulfilling a desperate need in education: the need for more male and minority teachers in disadvantaged school districts. "For a lot of my students there may not be a male role model at home, there is only a mother, and I think I may be the only role model they have," says Reyes.
The influence of teacher like Reyes in a child's life translates directly into better grades and higher self esteem, "Last year I was doing really bad in math and when I got you as my teacher, my scores went up'," said one of his fifth-grade students.
The rewards are just as great for the teacher. "I think when I look in a child's eyes and see their face glow and say 'I got that, sir, oh, I understand that, sir,' there is no greater feeling than to watch them just light up," Reyes says.
The future of Troops to Teachers is still in question, though. It may have the president's support but the program is running out of money. Educators have launched a grassroots effort to keep it alive. But it remains to be seen whether Congress will come up with the cash to turn military men and women into some of the two million teachers the nation will need in the next ten years.