This column originally appeared in USA Today in January 2005

Walking the Talk

Reg Weaver
President, NEA

You know the saying, "Put your money where your mouth is." That's what the Tom Joyner Foundation is doing in partnership with the National Education Association (NEA). The Foundation has committed $700,000 for a scholarship program to improve teacher quality where it's needed most -- in urban, rural and suburban public schools where minority students are facing challenges in academic achievement.

The program will enable qualified school of education students and unlicensed teachers currently working in public schools to participate in programs at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) designed to prepare them for licensing examinations.

Nearly 40 percent of America's students are minorities, but just 11 percent of our teachers are. Closing that gap must be part of any meaningful effort to close the gaps in student achievement between whites and minorities - a key element of our strategy to make public schools great for every child.

What is exciting about NEA's partnership with the Tom Joyner Foundation is that is an outstanding example of how we can all play a part in making quality educational opportunity the standard for every school and community. We may not all have the resources that the Tom Joyner Foundation has or the networking opportunities of an organization like the NEA. But we can see a need and take action - however small - to make the lives of children better.

NEA's Read Across America is a year-round effort to encourage parents and others in the community to be engaged in the lives of children in a celebration of reading. When parents read to their children - and when children see their parents reading - they do better in school in every subject matter.

Mentoring is something anyone can do. Caring adults spending time with children has enormous educational and social payoffs. Mentoring does more than enhance students' ability to learn. It provides opportunities to model and teach values young people will need to succeed in work and life, values like hard work, respect and responsibility.

We can all play a role in helping improve our communities and build a better America by getting involved in the lives of young people. Think about what you can do to walk the talk.