Katherine Yarbrough, originally from Richardson, attended RYLA as a camper in 2002. Since then, she has returned to camp four times and is currently working as a seventh-grade science teacher in Donna, Texas through Teach for America (TFA).
After graduating from Austin College in 2007, Kat was drawn to TFA, a program that aims to eliminate educational inequality by enlisting the country’s most promising future leaders. “TFA promised a significant challenge that I wanted to undertake. Before joining TFA, I knew that I would be a part of a nationwide movement to close the achievement gap,” Kat says.
Kat finds the most enjoyment in her role as a teacher when she’s able to eat lunch with her students, encourage them and celebrate little successes, such as their first A on a quiz.
Kat’s term with TFA, which will be complete in May, has given her a passion for education and advocating for its equality. She has learned how significantly a stable home, or lack thereof, can impact a child’s life and opportunities for success. “The impact it’s had on me makes me realize that the achievement gap and learning in general is tightly linked to home situations and that you, as a teacher, need to help your students separate school from home,” she says.
When school lets out for summer, she will leave the Texas Valley, but not Teach for America. Kat has recently been offered the Director of Office Operations position at the Houston TFA Institute. “I am in charge of designing and implementing effective office systems to ensure efficiency for all the Corps Members, be it supplies they need, communicating with TFA vendors, or distributing the fan mail to the TFA Corps Members,” Kat says.
Kat will hold this position from May through July. She will then be returning to the Valley for the next year, where she is applying to teach at Idea Quest, a college preparatory school in McAllen. Eventually, Kat wants to work or volunteer for Migrant Health Promotion, an organization that helps improve health in farming and border communities.
As for Camp RYLA, Kat says her camper year gave her the confidence to be a great leader. “I knew that I was a leader in training — my leadership study and practice had just begun,” she says, “Today, the people of RYLA hold me accountable for maintaining my dedication to servant leadership.”
Kat Yarbrough and her students
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