Ignite Fellowship

Program Description: 

TFA Ignite is a national high-impact tutoring program that builds on Teach For America’s 35-year history, core capabilities, and deep relationships with school partners. TFA Ignite accelerates learning and fosters belonging through live, online small group learning sessions led by college students. TFA Ignite supports schools to deliver instructionally coherent, high-impact tutoring by strategically aligning tutoring materials with students’ core instruction for maximum impact. School-based veteran educators serve as Ignite Site Leaders, supporting Ignite Fellows (tutors) in delivering the school curriculum and providing ongoing coaching and learning grounded in students’ needs.  

TFA Ignite recruits, selects, and trains extraordinary fellows to have an undeniable impact on students.  TFA Ignite fellows are college learners who have a deep belief in creating more equitable educational opportunities for young people. Fellows work directly with a small group of K-12 students virtually at least 3 times per week for 3-5 hours a week. This is a paid fellowship, providing fellows with a $1,000 financial award each semester (fall and spring) with bonus opportunities.  

Impact: 

In the past five years, TFA Ignite has grown from serving 160 students in 1 community to approximately 9,000 students across 50 communities while seeing meaningful student outcomes across the program. 

TFA Ignite delivers measurable student impact. 96 percent of schools reported positive effects on academic growth, and 95 percent reported increased student engagement. In just one semester, sixth-grade students achieved 3x the expected growth in math, while third- and fourth-grade students achieved 1.7x expected growth in reading, according to i-Ready results. 

TFA Ignite is also a proven pipeline into the teaching profession: over 800 tutors have gone on to join the Teach For America teacher corps. A new study from Stanford’s National Student Support Accelerator highlights TFA Ignite’s impact on strengthening the educator pipeline, finding that participation in TFA Ignite nearly triples the likelihood of applying to TFA’s corps program.  

Population Served: 

TFA Ignite fellows work with schools across the country, primarily in under-resourced urban and rural areas. 

To serve as a fellow, you must be an enrolled undergraduate, graduate student, a Teach for America alum, or a previously engaged Fellow. Fellows must also have a GPA of at least 2.5, be available to work up to 5 hours per week during K-12 school hours, be authorized to work in the U.S., and be at least 18 years old. 

Learn more here.  

Page last updated in August 2026