TCU graduate Miguel Ortega doesn’t just love teaching in low-income communities, he has a passion for it.

“Seeing them improving and seeing them come everyday with the purpose of learning, that’s awesome,” he said.

Ortega was the guest speaker at the Teach for America information session on Tuesday. He is working as a teacher after graduating in December of 2010. Ortega applied for Teach for America after hearing about it from others.

“TCU Alumni have been really successful at this program and they encouraged me to do it,” Ortega said. “I would not do anything different right now.”

Teach for America offers prospective teachers an opportunity to improve the level of education in low-income community schools. The program lasts for two years and is open to all majors, not just education.

Corps members like Ortega receive an opportunity to help children in need with the security of a salary over the time of their employment.

For Ortega, applying for Teach for America was all about making a difference. Ortega attended a underprivileged high school, so he was familiar with the achievement gap and felt driven to take action.

Ginny Gould, a senior international strategic communication major, said she was inspired by Ortega and was applying for the program and hoping to get accepted.

“I am a strong believer that education will get you farther in life, and I want to be that voice to help them reach their potential.”

Junior strategic communication major Lauren Souers said she had heard about the organization and was excited about the possibilities after hearing Ortega.

“A lot of them [these kids] might not have a lot of role models,” Souers said. “Getting to teach them and be really excited about it for two years would be awesome.”

Working for Teach for America is hard, but Ortega said it was well worth it.

“Not only does it help out the kids but it also helps you out in the future,” Ortega said.”I would recommend it to anyone in a heartbeat.”