There are few people today that have done more to advance educational opportunities around the globe more than Wendy Kopp. In 1989 Kopp founded Teach for America, a program which aims to battle educational inequity in the U.S. Under Kopp's guidance, Teach for America has proven to be an unqualified success. Now more than 8,000 Teach for America corps members — outstanding recent college graduates and professionals of all academic disciplines — are in the midst of two-year teaching commitments in 52 urban and rural regions. In 2013, after helming the program for 24 years, Kopp stepped down from her CEO role, while choosing to remain an active member of Teach For America's board. This move has allowed her to focus more time and energy on Teach for All, an international network of organizations that recruit graduates to teach in underfunded schools and provide them with training. Kopp Co-founded Teach for All in 2007 and currently acts as its Chief Executive Officer. Her lengthy list of honors includes the 2003 Clinton Center Award for Leadership and National Service and the 2004 John F. Kennedy New Frontier Award. She also holds numerous honorary doctorate degrees from elite schools like Dartmouth College and Harvard University. In 2008, Time Magazine recognized her as one of the World’s 100 Most Influential People.
Kopp first proposed the creation of Teach For America while she was an undergraduate at Princeton University. As a student of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Kopp's interest turned to educational inequality in America, going so far as to organize a conference on this topic as part of the Foundation for Student Communication. For her senior thesis, Kopp drew up a proposal for a national service organization, modeled on the Peace Corps, which would recruit graduates of the nation’s top universities to teach in underserved areas. Her thesis adviser was impressed with the proposal, but ultimately saw it as more of an intellectual exercise than a practical proposal. Nevertheless, in 1989, Kopp received her Bachelor of Arts degree in public policy from Princeton, where she was also a member of Princeton's Business Today and the University Press Club.
Kopp remains a dedicated member of the Princeton community and regular visitor to the campus. She most recently presented the keynote address to the 2019 Hire Tigers Career Summit, a university-sponsored event designed to foster collaboration between Princeton students and a wide range of organizations. That same year Kopp also appeared on the "She Roars" podcast, a program that celebrates women at Princeton. And yet, Kopp is perhaps best known around her alma mater for being the youngest person (and first woman) to ever receive the Woodrow Wilson Award, which Princeton University grants to alumni in recognition of their exemplary service to the nation. This award came in 1993, just four years after Kopp had graduated, making it all the more unique. Later in 2000 Kopp was again decorated by her alma mater when she was awarded an honorary doctorate for her ongoing contributions in public service.