Kopp proposed her idea for a national teachers’ corps in an undergraduate thesis she wrote while attending college at Princeton University. The organization she founded, Teach for America, recruits young college graduates to teach underprivileged children in low-income areas.

For Kopp, much of the significance of the Kennedy New Frontier Award comes from the identity of the man whose name it bears.

“It’s an honor and a little humbling to receive an award in the name of a president who accomplished so much,” she said.

While she acknowledges the importance of foreign policy in today’s world, Kopp said her message to young people is that “there is so much more to be done here [in the United States] to make sure that America lives up to its promise.”

Kopp also said her work at Teach for America has shown her that people with leadership qualities can make a difference in low-income school districts, and she believes that by working to solve problems with education in the short term, committed individuals can effect long-term progress.

“There is a need for society to...commit ourselves to fundamental, systematic change,” she said.