We are excited to welcome you to Teach For America Nashville-Chattanooga. As a teacher and member of our program, you have a special opportunity to participate in AmeriCorps, a network of national service programs, focused on improving lives and fostering civic engagement. 

AmeriCorps works in partnership with Teach For America. As an AmeriCorps member, you will commit time to address critical community needs such as increasing academic achievement through your role as a classroom teacher. 

In order to participate in AmeriCorps there are a number of eligibility criteria that must be met and maintained throughout the duration of the program. Everyone who meets the eligibility criteria will automatically be enrolled into the program, unless a person requests to opt out of participation. 

AmeriCorps members also have access to a number of benefits including: an education award, loan forbearance, and interest accrual repayment that incentive's their commitment to local communities. Though participation in the AmeriCorps program is optional and eligibility requirements must be met, each year over 98% of our program’s participants are AmeriCorps members serving in Nashville and Chattanooga. 

You will have a more detailed orientation to AmeriCorps this summer. In the meantime, Watch this video to learn more about Teach For America’s Partnership with AmeriCorps. Thank you for joining the Nashville-Chattanooga region, we can’t wait to serve with you!

All members enrolling in AmeriCorps (AC) must meet specific eligibility requirements. 

• Must be a US citizen, national, or legal permanent resident

  • Only US citizens, US nationals, or lawful permanent residents of the United States are eligible to enroll in AmeriCorps, as a federal program that is funded by taxpayer dollars. (45 CFR §2522.200).

  • For Teach For America, CMs must submit documentation from an approved list prior to enrollment to confirm their citizenship status and identity.

• Clear all criminal history checks

  • Programs must review a form of government issued photo ID as a part of the National Service Criminal History Check  (NSCHC) process to confirm that the member is who they say they are (#SafetyFirst). (45 CFR §2540.205). 

• Not exceed AmeriCorps service term limits 

• Teach full-time in your placement school through the last day of school

• Earn 1,700 hours of service

• Complete AmeriCorps paperwork and documentation by established deadlines

• Abide by all AmeriCorps and TFA policies outlined in the AmeriCorps Member Service Agreement

In order to comply with AmeriCorps federal regulations, Teach For America must collect legal documentation that proves each corps member who intends to enroll in AmeriCorps is a citizen, national, or lawful permanent resident of the United States. We ask that you scan and upload this documentation to the Applicant Center. 

Please use the chart on the next page to determine which documents are acceptable to establish that you are a citizen, national, or lawful permanent resident of the United States. At least one document must verify your identity (i.e. includes a clear photograph); in some cases it can be the same document that established your legal status, such as a passport.  You can certify your status in one of the following ways:

Provide one acceptable document from List A Documents that Establish Both Identity and Citizenship Status (e.g. a US Passport).

OR

Provide two documents: one document from List B, Documents that Establish Identity, and done document from List C, Documents that Establish Legal Status (e.g, a birth certificate and a current driver’s license).

The following do NOT establish the status of citizens, nationals, or lawful permanent residents: 

• A social security card

• A visa

• Expired documentation 

• A scan with a dark or blurry photograph 

Recipients of deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA) do not need to reference this chart or upload documentation for AmeriCorps. DACA recipients will receive specific instructions from our DACA support team on next steps.  Due to AmeriCorps regulations, individuals who are in the US under a student, work, or tourist visa or who have refugee status but not permanent resident alien status are not eligible to become Teach For America corps members. High-quality scans are ones that are legible and in which the photograph is clear. To ensure that your scan is high quality, please review your uploaded documents to confirm that all photographs are clear and that all text is legible.