Lincoln-Bassett Makes TFA Pitch

by Maya McFadden

TFA 2027 corps member Gus Ranzin, TFA applicant Meredith Henderson, corps member Stephania Korenovsky, and TFA staffer Mikayla Brown.

Principal Rosalind Garcia made a pitch to three incoming Teach For America (TFA) corps members: Become an educator in New Haven and, better yet, get your start at Lincoln-Bassett School.

Garcia’s pitch last Monday was followed up by a group visit to two classrooms at the PreK-8 public school where 2026 TFA corps members Viola Clune and Yana Rankine teach seventh- and eighth-grade English and math.

The school visit was arranged by TFA CT for two accepted 2027 TFA Corps members and a third prospective member who applied to join a week before. The group also included New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) human resource staffers Lisa Flegler and Rolanda Booker.

The TFA Corps program supports aspiring educators in securing a full-time, two-year teaching position in “under-resourced K-12 schools” as they pursue their master’s degree and teaching certification. This school year, TFA has 13 corps members teaching in NHPS.

The two-hour visit last Monday included the opportunity for the group to observe Clune and Rankine’s classrooms at Bassett as well as two classes where another two Bassett teachers hosted TFA’s virtual small-group tutoring initiative, Ignite.

Principal Garcia offered incoming TFA 2027 members Stephania Korenovsky and Gus Renzin and prospective member MeredithHenderson an honest pitch that highlighted the intentional dedication that administrators like her offer to educators, especially those early in their careers.

She also noted the reality of the state of schools, from vacancies to facilities disruptions. Garcia pointed out the brand new vinyl flooring the group stood on in Bassett’s community room, after the old floor was severely damaged in August by a burst sprinkler that flooded the community room, STEM lab, and two floors of classrooms.

Being in eduction for the past 37 years, Garcia said, has taught her a lot beyond the classrooms. Now as principal, she said, “some of the most excited and involved teachers have been members of TFA.”

She said that many educators extend their role outside of the classroom when they “see a need in the building and figure out how to fill it.”

Even as a first-year teacher, Rankine, who teaches math, has shared plans to start a STEM after-school club for middle school girls at Bassett. Clune has also already expressed interest in starting a volleyball group for students.

Garcia also said that the school is “seeing results” in classrooms receiving tutoring help from Ignite.

She concluded that she is looking forward to bringing more corps members to Bassett and left the trio of incoming teachers with a final pitch: “In your pursuit, consider Lincoln-Bassett — or wherever I am.”

Korenovsky is currently a public health graduate student at Yale who grew up in East Haven.

Renzin is a senior at Yale who has worked at Troup School for the past three years. His experience at Troup led to his interest in starting his education career through TFA.

Incoming 2027 corps member Gus Renzin with Bassett seventh graders.

The group visited two classrooms to see in actionthe growing Ignite tutoring program hosted by TFA in partnership with school leaders, offering up to ninth grade math and K-4 literacy intervention to their students during the school day. Students talked one on one or in small groups with tutors online during their first-period intervention block.

While visiting classrooms, Korenovsky observed the students working with Ignite tutors while practicing independent skills, like taking initiative to walk to the other side of the classroom to help a classmate fix their computer as they worked in a small group online with tutors from all over the country.

“I’d love to have this in my classroom,” said Korenovsky, who plans to teach at the elementary level, though he has not yet gotten to the district placement process with TFA. “It seems like a nice start to the day, especially because so many schools prioritize intervention.”

In fourth-grade teacher OluchiOkeke’s classroom, students Kenyatta and Dayvon worked in separate tutoring groups on their Chromebooks. They also discussed the steps to solving their math problems on the screen. When seven times 20 came up on Dayvon’s screen, he said, “First I’d do seven times two and get 14, then put a zero from the 20 at the end of the 14, making it 140.”

Fourth grader Dayvon at work with math Ignite tutors.

Korenovsky has a degree in health care management from the University of Connecticut, though she learned she does not want to work for a health insurance company like many of her peers with the same degree did. Now at Yale studying public health, Korenovsky discovered education along the way. She took a practicum course last year which taught her about the statewide legislative work the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents has done. That course, as well as her experience as a Ukrainian dance teacherfor 5- to 16-year-olds and her family’s long history of women educators, inspired her to embark on the TFA journey.

TFA Senior Managing Director Sarah Diggs said that 89 percent of 2024 corps members placed in NHPS are still teaching for a third year. NHPS’ Flegler said that the school district’s partnership with TFA has brought great educators to the school district, helping fill vacancies.

In Rankine’s math classroom on Monday, her seventh-grade students eagerly welcomed the TFA visitors. Before working on graphing proportional relationships, the class encouraged Henderson, Korenovsky, and Renzin to consider teaching seventh graders.

After Monday’s visit, Henderson said that Rankine’s ability to get her students excited to learn math was impressive. What stood out to her was also students’ confidence while having observers in their classroom. “It takes a certain kind of cultivation in classroom management to instill that kind of confidence,” she said while adding she hopes to learn from Rankine what techniques she can share as a first-year teacher to help her instill that same confidence in her students.

Rankine is a Norwalk native who first began her career as a substitute teacher in Norwalk Public Schools before joining TFA’s 2026 corps cohort.

In Clune’s English class, Renzin sat with students as they read pages of the class’s assigned book, Monster by Walter Dean Myers.

He said that Monday’s visit revealed to him the technical challenges teachers face, like having a large classroom of students that read at different levels.

Clune grew up in Maryland and graduated from Yale with a history degree. She spent a year working for Justice for Everybody Movement as a program coordinator focused on advocating for educational opportunities for incarcerated youth.

When Korenovsky reflected on her visit to Clune’s class on Monday, she said she was impressed watching her balance the class’s book discussion and a small group of students who also worked on online assessments. “There was a lot going on and some were engaged and some not, but she was able to be in multiple places at once,” she said. “I hope I’ll be able to balance my classroom the same.”

Before the group headed out of Bassett Monday, Garcia shared a final suggestion: “When it’s time to make your choices, consider us.” 

TFA 2026 corps member and Bassett math teacher Yana Rankine.

TFA 2026 corps member and Bassett English teacher Viola Clune.

TFA group meets in Bassett’s newly repaired community room.