5Q: Kristine Frech

 / PBN PHOTO/RUPERT WHITELEY
/ PBN PHOTO/RUPERT WHITELEY

1 You were a 2008 corps member in Charlotte, N.C. How can that experience carry over to your role as executive director?

One of the most important things my experience as a corps member provided me is a deep belief that all children can succeed and deserve an excellent education. The lifelong commitment to educational equity, which started with my corps experience, is what led me to my role as executive director. My core values and belief in all students, which grew during my time in the classroom, are paramount to my being effective in this role.

2 What do you hope to accomplish in your first 90 days leading the Rhode Island branch?

I believe Rhode Island can be the national leader in closing the opportunity gap. In my first 90 days, I will be focused on three primary things: getting to know my team, building relationships with those in the community who inform or contribute to our collective work and building context for the impact of our work on the lives of students in Rhode Island.

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3 The Rhode Island TFA branch is only 6 years old. How do you hope to increase its impact?

We will build on that impact by increasing the diversity of the teachers we recruit and focusing on recruiting and retaining more of our alumni to live and work here. I believe the largest opportunity we have for increasing impact is building a strong movement of both corps members and alumni in Rhode Island. We have approximately 55 corps members and over 170 alumni in the state, and through both their individual and collective work for educational equity we can see Teach For America’s theory of change in action.

4 How will you drum up more interest for Teach for America from Rhode Islanders?

We proactively recruit Rhode Islanders and other students at [the state’s] colleges and universities. Our corps members include folks who grew up in the very schools they are now teaching in, as well as folks who grew up across the country. We strive to recruit a diverse group of leaders, recent college graduates and professionals, and believe we need leaders who share the racial and economic backgrounds of our students.

5 What do you think are the biggest challenges facing school-aged youth in Rhode Island?

Rhode Island has some of the largest opportunity gaps between white students and students of color in the country. This disparity is startling and has generational consequences. •

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