Jim Gribble was told by his supervisor that his second grade class was one of the worst-behaved classes she had ever seen—and that was only during his training week.

All of Gribble's students eventually passed the class and he is now in his first year as a kindergarten teacher at Shamrock Gardens Elementary in Charlotte, N.C. Gribble, a 2007 Marquette alumnus, is one of the thousands of recent college graduates participating in Teach For America, a program in which recent college graduates commit two years to serve as elementary, middle school or high school teachers in low-income areas after completing a training process.

"You have your best days and worst days as a teacher," Gribble said. "But the kids really make everything worth it."

Gribble said he heard about the Teach For America program during his junior year at Marquette.

Gribble said working through Teach For America allowed him to have a personal connection with the people of low-income communities and gave him firsthand experience with issues such communities face. He said people in the Teach For America program realize the children in these low-income communities simply need motivation.

Upon completing the program, Gribble said Teach for America provides ongoing support by providing different resources such as online tools, workshops and courses. He said he is trying to learn Spanish through Teach For America resources to help reduce the language barrier he has with the parents of some of his students.

After completing her two-year commitment to Teach For America, Patricia McKee, a 2005 Marquette alumna, decided to stay with education and provide insight to new Teach For America corps members.

McKee is an eighth grade special education teacher at Warren G. Harding Middle School in Philadelphia.

Along with helping her become a licensed teacher, McKee said the program opened her eyes and brought her closer to certain issues such as the educational gap between middle-class and low-income families, welfare reform, public housing and the juvenile justice system.

"It helped me to understand the things that I took for granted," she said. "The educational gap in this country is tragic."

Ali Ashley, program director for Teach For America, said McKee always maintained a great outlook and approached her work with optimism. Ashley worked with McKee this summer training new teachers in Philadelphia while McKee served as a corps member adviser.

Ashley said McKee's role was intense and demanding and that McKee used her own experience to help prepare other members for the challenges of teaching in low-income communities.

McKee said Teach For America taught her to be prepared for something different every day. She hopes to come back to Marquette soon so she can tell students about her experiences and what the program did for her.

"The program utterly changes the rest of your life," she said.