Recruiting and Retaining Educators of Color Matters
All students benefit from having educators and
administrators of color. Studies show that when schools
are more racially and ethnically diverse, students’
academic performance improves, more positive role
modeling occurs, teachers and students tend to be more
culturally aware, and students are less likely to hold
implicit biases in adulthood.
1
While the number of educators of color has grown
in recent years, studies also show that schools and
districts struggle to recruit and retain newly hired
educators of color. Educators of color, who are more
likely to enter the profession from alternate career
pathways, cite experiencing an antagonistic school
culture, navigating unfavorable conditions, and bearing
high costs as reasons for leaving the profession.
4
Improving both recruitment and retention of educators
of color is critical to building inclusive and welcoming
learning environments for both students and educators.
