The Walton Family Foundation has announced a $4.3 million grant to Teach for America – Mississippi Delta in support of the organization's efforts to improve K-12 education in the Delta region of Arkansas and Mississippi.

The grant will enable TFA-Delta to increase the number of teachers it places in schools in the region to 582 this fall and 610 in the 2014-15 school year. A previous grant from the foundation supported the placement of more than 550 corps members in 125 schools during the 2012-13 school year. Since 1993, the foundation has awarded grants totaling nearly $15 million to TFA-Delta.

"Teach For America is one of our most strategic partners in the effort to ensure all children in the Delta region have access to a quality education," said Kathy Smith, senior program officer for the Walton Family Foundation. "Over the past twenty years, we have witnessed the unprecedented success corps members have had in educating children in the Delta. We believe a high-quality education is a critical condition of economic progress and community development."

"Each year we have to turn away qualified, dynamic applicants due to the lack of funding," said TFA-Delta executive director Ron Nurnberg. "With this grant we will be able to deepen our relationship with Delta schools by placing hardworking, transformative leaders in many more local classrooms. This is a significant win for local children."