Dr. Tom Burnham , Dean of the School of Education, has been visiting many of the Mississippi Teacher Corps participants. In the past few weeks Dr. Burnham visited Sarah Alford, a 2nd year teacher at Humphrey County High School in Belzoni and Deslin Chapman, a 2nd year at Simmons High School in Hollandale. Both Sarah and Deslin are English teachers.

“It was great,” said Dr. Burnham. “The teachers are doing a fantastic job, and it's great to see how the kids respond to them. As I've said before I'm grateful that they have given two years to teach in these high-need areas. What is particularly impressive about this group (of second-year teachers) is th e n umber that are staying after this year.” Ten of the fifteen second-year Mississippi Teacher Corps participants are staying to teach in Mississippi next year.

Dr. Burnham is the former State Superintendent of Mississippi. He most recently served as the Superintendent of Henderson County Public Schools, one of the largeest school districts in North Carolina .

The Mississippi Teacher Corps is a two-year program that recruits recent college graduates to teach in critical-shortage areas in the Mississippi Delta, in exchange for a full scholarship for a master's degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of Mississippi . The program was founded in 1989 by Amy Gutman, a Harvard University graduate and Dr. Andy Mullins , current Special Assistant to the Chancellor of Ole Miss. Since 1989 more than 300 participants, reaching an estimated 4,500 students, have taught in critical-needs school districts as part of the Mississippi Teacher Corps.

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