CAMDEN - The Walton Family Foundation, an Arkansas-based charity founded by the family that owns Walmart, has given $50 million to Teach For America (TFA) to hire new teachers — including 75 in the city of Camden.

The grant, announced Wednesday, supports teacher recruitment efforts, training and professional development as part of a three-year program.

Schools in the Mississippi Delta region of Arkansas and Mississippi will receive funding for 800 teachers; Memphis, New Orleans, Houston, Los Angeles and Indianapolis will also receive funding for hundreds of new teachers.

In Camden, the funding will go to assist teachers in charter and Renaissance schools.

"This grant is predominantly focused on charter and Renaissance schools as there are only two Teach for America teachers within the district, both serving in a high-need staffing area," said district spokesman Brendan Lowe.

Calls to the Walton Family Foundation and Teach For America were not returned Thursday.

It was unclear which schools in the city would benefit from the grant or whether there is any timeline or plan for hiring.

Teach For America is a nationwide nonprofit that recruits and hires teachers to work in urban, poor and underserved schools for a period of two years.

It was founded in 1989 by a Princeton University student, Wendy Kopp, who wrote her senior thesis about the long-term effects of poverty on educational outcomes.

(Article Link: http://www.courierpostonline.com/story/news/2015/11/05/camden-schools-teach-for-america-walmart-grant/75233528/)