Teach for America: The individuals who apply to Teach for America aren't necessarily looking for a career in education. Although 85 percent of recruits finish their two-year commitment, only 36 percent are still teachers two years later. That's not a negative to Teach for America, however, given that its mission is to influence the quality of education on a national scale. Alums can move the needle on that mission in administrative and policy roles, and the percentage that remains in the general education field is 60 percent. Wendy Kopp sees an important role for the other 40 percent as well, noting, “I think the way to understand Teach for America is as a leadership development program. We need political leaders, policy makers, doctors, lawyers, and probably more business leaders than we are producing right now who actually understand what it means to successfully teach in this context