From left: Zina Knox, M.Ed.’12, Melissa Cera-Garcia, M.Ed.’12, and Chuks Ekwelum, M.Ed.’12 are among 10 Lynch School master’s degree students who received Bank of America Charitable Foundation scholarships in exchange for agreeing to work in an urban school system for at least three years.
and what makes leaders,” said Kenny. “Bank of America chose us because we have a commitment to high-quality research, significant partnerships with local schools, and a focus on urban schools with programs like the Donovan Scholars. [See sidebar on page 56.] “We also have programs like the Lynch Leadership Academy [for principals of urban public, Catholic, and charter schools]. We’re a top-ranked school of education that focuses on all these areas, and these scholarships allow us to bring in students who are attracted to our program and to make it affordable.” The award comes at a time when it has become increasingly difficult to attract some of the best and brightest education school students to urban education, said Adam Poluzzi, director of graduate admissions and financial aid. With the tab for a
photograph: Lee Pellegrini
full-year master’s program at a top-ranked private university running approximately $40,000, more teachers each year launch their careers carrying significant graduate school debt—and fewer want to work in challenging, under-resourced city school districts. While approximately 80 percent of Lynch School graduate students receive some form of financial aid, the Bank of America grants represent the largest stipend for master’s degree students Poluzzi is aware of, he said. The size of the grants reflects the bank foundation’s recognition that teacher retention is as significant a concern as recruitment in city school systems today, said Robert E. Gallery, president of Bank of America Massachusetts. According to the National Education Association, some 20 percent of newly hired teachers leave the classroom within three years. In urban
districts, close to 50 percent leave their profession within five years. “By creating incentives for men and women who are truly passionate about education, we can keep them in the schools where they are needed most,” Gallery said. a generous financial aid package can mean more than savings to a student such as Nathalie Ais, M.Ed.’12, a Smith College graduate who said she’s been told many times that she was “too smart to be a teacher,” an assessment she rejected. Ais, who spent the time between graduation and coming to Boston College teaching at two Florida private schools, said that receiving one of this year’s grants reaffirmed her choice of career. “It is motivating,” she added. “It feels good that I am not the only one who thinks urban education is important.”
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