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The application for the 2012-2013 Teaching Ambassador Fellowship is now closed. The names of the 2012-2013 Fellows have been announced. Read the press release.     

If you are interested in applying for 2013-2014 Fellowship, email us at teacherfellowship@ed.gov with the subject line “notify me” and we will inform you when the 2013-2014 application is released. We anticipate that the next competition will be announced at the end of the year.

"We have a set of amazing teachers each year who spend a year with the Department and help drive our policy discussion…I have come to rely on the Teaching Ambassador Fellows for their invaluable feedback and their ability to facilitate dialogue with teachers across the country." - Secretary Arne Duncan

In recent years, a strong spotlight has been cast on how important effective teaching is to dramatically improving education across America. With over three million public school teachers, America is fortunate to have many committed and highly effective instructors in our schools. These teachers understand better than anyone the rewards of public education, as well as the need for some dramatic improvements.

Teachers perform many vital leadership activities in classrooms and schools, but too often lack opportunities to contribute their knowledge to the development of education policy on a broader scale. The U.S. Department of Education designed the Teaching Ambassador Fellowship to enable outstanding teachers to bring their classroom expertise to and expand their knowledge of the national dialogue about education. In turn, Teaching Ambassador Fellows facilitate the learning and input of other educators and community members.

Mission: The Teaching Ambassador Fellowship is designed to improve education for students by involving teachers in the development and implementation of national education policy. The Fellowship seeks to:

• Create a community of teacher leaders who share expertise and collaborate with policymakers and leaders in the federal government on national education issues.

• Involve teachers in developing policies that affect the classroom.

• Expand teachers' leadership in policy at the national, state, and local levels.

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