U.S. classrooms are more diverse than ever. The teacher's lounge is not.

  • by:
  • Source: USA TODAY
  • 05/17/2024
Middle school educator Jeffrey Lee is the only Black male English teacher at his school, which serves about 815 students northwest of Philadelphia.

"It can be a lonely existence. I almost feel like the last dinosaur that roamed the Earth," Lee said. "I have students say, 'You’re the first African American or male teacher of color' they’ve ever had."

Seventy years after a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision outlawing segregation in public schools, Lee's story illustrates a lingering imbalance at schools nationwide: Students of color now make up more than half of America's students, but the number of teachers and principals of color has not kept apace.

An analysis of state-by-state data from The New Teacher Project, a nonprofit organization working to redesign education to meet the needs of students of color and students living in poverty, shows that across a majority of U.S. campuses, nearly one-fourth of public schools did not have an educator of color on staff. Meanwhile, students of color were the majority at public schools.

Please help put parents in charge of their child’s education by forwarding this article to other parents, family, friends and voters.
restaurant interior by Jungwoo Hong is licensed under Unsplash unsplash.com

Other Articles

Fight for more parental leave for teachers intensifies
California is currently at the center of the debate, where educators are excluded from any fully paid parental leave.
Read More
33 California schools awarded 2023 National Blue Ribbon honor
Four schools in Hacienda La Puente Unified, with 16,000 students in Los Angeles, received a National Blue Ribbon Award, the most this year from any California school district. The U.S. Department of Education announced the 353 public and private school winners nationwide, including 33 in California, on Tuesday (see pages 2 to 5 for California recipients).
Read More
Deadly disasters are ravaging school communities in growing numbers. Is there hope ahead?
After one of the deadliest wildfires in U.S. history, Philip Raya, his wife and two young children drove through the wreckage of Lahaina – looking at bodies and the ashes of the town they once called home – enroute to a new start on the other side of Maui.
Read More
Childcare workers in California need paths to higher pay
California’s early care and education workforce provides essential support and assistance to families across the state. But even as families trust them to care for and teach their children, many workers struggle to improve their wages and economic mobility.
Read More
A quick guide to reading the newest California School Dashboard data
After a three-year hiatus, the California School Dashboard has been released, giving California educators and families a detailed snapshot of how the education system has been running post-pandemic.
Read More
LGBTQ+ students in conservative crosshairs
Seven California school districts pass policies requiring staff tell parents if students are transgender
Read More
SoCal high schools top recent ranking, Bay Area schools follow
Several Bay Area schools were among the top California public high schools in a recent report, but Southern California schools dominated the top of the list.
Read More
Teachers Can Make $150,000 with the Children's Educational Opportunity Act
Teaching goes beyond being just a job; it is a genuine calling. Teachers, like you, understand the profound impact of shaping young minds and providing them with the finest education possible.
Read More

Get latest news delivered daily!

We will send you breaking news right to your inbox

© 2025 educationopportunity.org, Privacy Policy | FPPC #1460602