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"Teachers have made a huge difference in my life. Among my key priorities this year is lifting up our nation’s teachers and the education profession. The Teaching Ambassador Fellowship and Teach to Lead are great steps in this direction. I am eager to work with the Fellows to do even more to support educators as they work to expand educational equity and excellence each day." - Acting Secretary John King (former High School Social Studies Teacher)

The application window for the 2016-2017 Teaching Ambassador Fellowship is now closed. Sign up to be notified when the application opens for the 2017-2018 year.

We have come to understand in recent years that effective teaching is the critical link to improving educational outcomes in America, and indeed our nation’s progress. 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.

Throughout this experience, Teaching Fellows work with one another and Principal Ambassador Fellows to:

• LEARN about federal education policy and ED
• REACH out to teachers and schools in the field
• REFLECT with ED staff on the knowledge gained

For more information on how the Fellowship works, please see our Program Overview.