Wendy Kopp
Born 1967 · Age 58
Founder of Teach For America and co-founder & CEO of Teach For All; nonprofit leader focused on educational equity.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Austin, Texas
Wendy Sue Kopp was born in Austin, Texas to parents who ran a small visitor newsletter business.
Family business grows; moves across Texas
Her parents expanded a one-page newsletter into a guidebook business, moving to San Antonio and then Dallas (Park Cities) so Wendy could attend highly rated public schools.
Graduated Highland Park High School (approx.)
Completed secondary education in Dallas (Highland Park High School), preparing to enter Princeton University.
Entered Princeton University (Woodrow Wilson School)
Began undergraduate studies in public policy at Princeton's School of Public and International Affairs; active in student journalism and extracurriculars.
Organized education conference for Foundation for Student Communication
As an undergraduate she organized a conference on improving public education in rural and urban areas, sparking the idea for a national teacher corps.
Senior thesis proposing national teacher corps
Wrote a 177-page senior thesis titled 'An Argument and Plan for the Creation of the Teachers Corps' proposing a national, Peace Corps-style teacher corps.
Moved to New York City to launch idea
After graduating from Princeton she relocated to NYC to fundraise, recruit, and build the initial team for her proposed national teacher corps.
Seed support from Mobil Oil (living grant)
Received a seed grant from Mobil Oil to live on while she pursued further support for her teacher corps proposal.
Union Carbide offered free office space
Union Carbide provided free office space in New York City to help launch the organization.
Founded Teach For America (TFA)
Shortly after graduating from Princeton, Wendy Kopp founded Teach For America to recruit top graduates to teach in underserved schools.
Early fundraising: H. Ross Perot 3-to-1 challenge grant (secured)
H. Ross Perot offered a three-to-one matching/challenge grant that significantly boosted early fundraising for TFA.
Charter corps: 500 inaugural Teach For America corps members
After a national recruitment campaign that yielded 2,500 applicants in four months, 500 were selected as the charter TFA corps and trained in a summer institute.
2,500 applications received in first four months
Grassroots campus recruitment produced 2,500 volunteer applications within four months, proving the demand among top students.
Echoing Green fellowship / grant
Received support from Echoing Green which helped establish a larger headquarters and scale operations; recognized as a 1991 Echoing Green Fellow.
Jefferson Award for Public Service
Awarded the Jefferson Award for Public Service in recognition of her early leadership with Teach For America.
Summer institutes & city expansion (early program scale)
TFA established summer training institutes and expanded placements to cities including Los Angeles, Houston, New York City and later Philadelphia.
Honorary doctorates (early recognitions)
Received honorary doctorates (listed in sources: Connecticut College and Drew University in 1995).
Married Richard Barth (estimated)
Wendy Kopp is married to Richard Barth (President of KIPP Foundation). The exact marriage year is not specified in the provided sources; year here is an estimate for timeline completeness.
Honorary doctorate from Princeton University
Princeton awarded Wendy Kopp an honorary doctorate (listed among her honorary degrees in sources).
Relocated to New York City (residence milestone)
Lives in Manhattan with husband Richard Barth and their four children; active in national and global speaking and travel for TFA/Teach For All.
Published 'One Day, All Children' (book)
Released One Day, All Children: The Unlikely Triumph of Teach For America and What I Learned Along the Way detailing the creation and growth of TFA.
Record 17,000 TFA applications
Teach For America received a record 17,000 applications in 2005 and was the top employer of new graduates on some campuses.
Created Katrina Relief Corps
In autumn 2005, Wendy Kopp launched the Katrina Relief Corps to serve students and communities impacted by Hurricane Katrina.
Golden Plate Award / Academy of Achievement recognition
Received the Golden Plate Award and Academy of Achievement Gold Medal at the International Achievement Summit.
Founded Teach For All (co-founder & CEO)
Co-founded Teach For All, a global network supporting independent social enterprises adapting the Teach For America model worldwide; serves as CEO.
Appeared on The Colbert Report
Guest appearance on The Colbert Report (television) on February 5, 2007; public media engagement.
Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship
Awarded the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship in recognition of her global social impact.
Presidential Citizens Medal
Received the Presidential Citizens Medal for service and leadership in education.
Teach For America annual operating budget > $300M (reported)
Teach For America reported an annual operating budget of more than $300 million (date not specifically given; used as an organizational milestone approximate to 2010s).
Honorary doctorate from Marquette University
Received an honorary doctorate from Marquette (included in the listed honorary degrees).
TFA first 22 years: 33,000+ graduates reached 3 million students
By the organization's 22nd year (circa 2011), more than 33,000 graduates had served, reaching over three million students in high-need communities.
Published 'A Chance to Make History' (book)
Released A Chance to Make History: What Works and What Doesn't in Providing an Excellent Education for All.
Received honorary Doctor of Laws from Harvard
Awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree during Harvard University's commencement exercises (May 24, 2012).
Transitioned from TFA CEO to Chair of Board; continued as Teach For All CEO
After 24 years leading Teach For America, Wendy relinquished day-to-day CEO duties in 2013, became chair of the Teach For America board and continued as CEO of Teach For All.
TFA scale in 2013: 10,000 corps members; 750,000 students; 28,000 alumni
By 2013, more than 10,000 Teach For America corps members were teaching in neediest communities (reaching approx. 750,000 students), and there were 28,000+ alumni.
Speaking engagement: 'Leading an Educational Revolution' (Los Angeles)
Spoke/interviewed at an event titled 'Leading an Educational Revolution' (Sept 17, 2013) discussing founding TFA and lessons learned.
Honorary doctorate: University of Oklahoma
Received an honorary doctorate from the University of Oklahoma (listed among honorary degrees).
Honorary doctorate from Arizona State University
Awarded an honorary doctorate by Arizona State (listed among her honorary degrees).
WISE Prize for Education
Received the WISE Prize for Education in recognition of her global contribution to education.
ASU+GSV Lifetime Achievement Award
Named the recipient of the 2023 ASU+GSV Lifetime Achievement Award for her contributions to education and leadership development.
Teach For All partners in 60+ countries
Teach For All had partners operating in more than 60 countries, supporting local organizations adapting the TFA model.
Teach For All global scale: 15,000 teachers reached 1.3M students (network)
Teach For All network reported more than 15,000 network teachers collectively reaching approximately 1.3 million students worldwide (Wikipedia 2024 data).
Continues as CEO of Teach For All and Chair of Teach For America board
Maintains leadership roles: CEO of Teach For All and Chair of the board of Teach For America; frequently speaks internationally.
Key Achievement Ages
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