Claire comes to Tulsa

Claire Jacobson and I met when we were roommates during summer 2007 in Barcelona, Spain. I consider her to be one of those very special life-long friends that you only get a few of, and I am so glad she will be living in Tulsa for the next 2 years. She and the other TFA teachers are going to make such a huge difference in the lives of the kids that they're going to be teaching.

During her 1st week in Tulsa she was so surprised to see herself on the front page of the Tulsa World. Well deserved, Claire!

A taste of Tulsa: The new teachers are in town to learn about the city and its culture.

Claire Jacobson, a Teach for America teacher who graduated from Princeton University, asks a panel of local experts a question about Tulsa. SHERRY BROWN/Tulsa World

By ANDREA EGER World Staff Writer
Published: 6/24/2009 2:21 AM
Last Modified: 6/24/2009 9:36 AM

Tulsa's first class of recruits from Teach for America has arrived for a whirlwind week of community welcomes and personnel paperwork.

American Indian dancers and singers on Tuesday greeted the recent college graduates who will go to work for Tulsa Public Schools and Head Start early childhood education centers beginning in August.

Tuesday's event at Williams Cos. was designed to expose Tulsa's newest residents to the cultural diversity of the area. They heard from a panel of local community leaders and then had a chance to ask questions.

Claire Jacobsen, a Princeton University graduate who hails from San Luis Obispo, Calif., asked the panel about how accurately minorities are represented in Oklahoma textbooks, particularly at the elementary school level because she is set to teach at Houston Elementary School.

Panelists told the teachers that specialists at the Tulsa City-County Library's resource centers for African-Americans, American Indians and Hispanics could help them find materials to supplement their lessons.

The speakers also drew some laughs by trying to dispel some commonly held myths about Tulsa or Oklahoma in general.

Sheryl Siddiqui, with the Islamic Society of Tulsa, shared a cautionary tale about how an out-of-state man who was hired at a local private school showed up to work in a brand new cowboy hat and boots from Drysdales, only to learn those aren't typical attire within the city limits.

"The purpose is really two-part: One, getting them acquainted with Tulsa Public Schools and having them take care of all of the human resources procedures for new hires and two, is an organized effort on the part of many community leaders to say 'Welcome to Tulsa.'"