Kristen Enyedi’s Post

All students benefit from a diverse teaching workforce. Yet, in 21% of school districts nationwide, not a single teacher of color is present. TNTP’s new National K-12 Teacher & Student Demographic Dashboards provide crucial data to address this gap. With up-to-date demographic trends on teachers and students, this tool empowers policymakers, educators, and communities to take meaningful steps toward increasing diversity in schools. Explore current student-teacher racial diversity trends in your district and learn how to advance your educator diversity goals: https://ow.ly/BeYl50T8fY8

All students benefit from a diverse teaching workforce. Yet, in 21% of school districts nationwide, not a single teacher of color is present. TNTP’s new National K-12 Teacher & Student Demographic Dashboards provide crucial data to address this gap. With up-to-date demographic trends on teachers and students, this tool empowers policymakers, educators, and communities to take meaningful steps toward increasing diversity in schools.    Explore current student-teacher racial diversity trends in your district and learn how to advance your educator diversity goals: https://ow.ly/BeYl50T8fY8

New research from the National Council on Teacher Quality finds that people of color who could be pursuing teaching are opting for other professions. This lack of diversity growth in the classroom is especially concerning for several reasons: There is a trove of research about the benefits students gain from having representative teachers, and in Louisiana nearly 60% of public school students are non-white but only 25% of teachers identify the same way. I'm grateful to The Times-Picayune | Nola.com for the opportunity to speak about why representation is so vital to Louisiana's classrooms and the broader education system, how Teach For America is investing in solutions, and to share a bit about why this topic is personal to me. Check out the piece here: https://lnkd.in/gGatRk5x

"Louisiana’s teacher workforce is less diverse than its population of college-educated adults, according to a new report that suggests people of color in Louisiana who are qualified to become teachers are choosing other professions. At Teach for America, where more than half of current corps members identify as people of color and about 20% are from Louisiana, Tatum said his team has intensified its focus on recruiting from historically Black colleges and universities, which produce nearly half of the country’s Black teachers." Thank you to the amazing Ge'ron Tatum for sharing his story and our organizational efforts to diversify the educator workforce in Louisiana!

As of 2023, students of color and indigenous students made up about 38% of Minnesota’s K-12 population, but teachers of color and indigenous teachers made up only about 6% of the total workforce. Because of these gaps, EdAllies convened a Community Action Team (CAT) cohort in 2023 to examine the barriers that discourage and prevent teachers of color from entering the workforce. The report generated by that team is available now! Read about the barriers our CAT cohort members experienced firsthand and the proposed solutions to improve teacher pathways for people of color. Download the report at https://lnkd.in/grTHSnK2

🚨 "The History of the Strategy Playbook for School Boards: How We Got Here"🚨 For decades, school boards have been the cornerstone of public education, focused on shaping policies and improving outcomes for students and communities. But today, they’ve become one of the most contentious battlegrounds in the culture wars. This article unpacks how school boards evolved from community pillars to stepping stones for political influence—and what that shift means for students, teachers, and the future of public education. 🔥 What’s inside:  💡 How local school boards were co-opted into ideological conflicts. 💡 The rise of strategic playbooks targeting school boards to push political agendas. 💡 The four-step process interest groups use to influence school boards—including issues like CRT, book bans, and SEL. 💡 The toll this politicization takes on superintendents, students, school leaders, educators, and communities. 💡 Proven strategies based on history used to reclaim school boards focused on student academic achievement. 🤔 Key questions addressed: Why are school boards being targeted so aggressively now? What are the long-term risks of these ideological battles? How can communities resist and refocus school boards on academic success? Who benefits from this dysfunction—and at what cost? 🔗 Read the full article to learn how the playbook works, what’s at stake, and how we can disrupt the cycle: https://lnkd.in/gF5wwXe7 📣  Are we losing sight of what school boards were designed to do? How can we bring the focus back to students? Let’s discuss—drop your thoughts below! 💬

We need more, not fewer, programs for students to significantly advance and support gifted potential in all demographics, schools, etc. Open eyes and willing hands invite kids to shine- and they see kids who have been missed, whose skill sets are untapped and floundering- and they take the ceilings off learning. This means- we also must train teachers everywhere in gifted education techniques, too- they need to see, understand, support and raise the opportunities for these kids- countering the misperceptions of gifted programs. And where any programs have gone astray in their purpose and their invitation, informed educators can realign, enhance, and grow the programs forward to see and support kids. More programs, better programs, not fewer; more teacher training- this addresses inequities.

On this day, May 17, 1954, segregation in public schools became unconstitutional! But progress towards integrated schools has stalled. Pedro Noguera, Dean of the USC Rossier School of Education, dives into this issue in his article. Learn how schools remain divided and what we can do for equal education: https://lnkd.in/gBKsUyhM What are your thoughts on school integration today? #BrownvBoard #EducationEquity

I just published a new piece titled "Where Have Our Children Gone? Chronic Absenteeism and the Disappearance of Black, Latinx, and Economically Disadvantaged Students Post-COVID" on the forwardED Perspectives site. The pandemic has amplified the crisis of chronic absenteeism, particularly among our most vulnerable students. In this article, I explore the deep-rooted social inequities driving this issue, using real data from major U.S. cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Detroit. I also discuss how we can interrupt this alarming trend through strategies such as: * Ethnographies of students’ lives at atomic and sub-atomic levels * Centering belonging and relationships in school climates * Offering more flexible, student-centered models of schooling If you're interested in education, equity, or the future of our schools, I hope you'll take a moment to read and share your thoughts. We need to work together to create school environments where all students feel seen, valued, and supported. You can read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/erkxqUqg #EducationEquity #ChronicAbsenteeism #PostCovidEducation #BelongingInSchools #forwardED

Research Update! Surfacing Principals’ Beliefs About Instruction for Students With Disabilities: A Qualitative Analysis Confronting the unknown: Principal preparation training in issues related to special education" examines the adequacy of principal preparation programs in addressing special education issues. The study evaluates the extent to which these programs equip future principals with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively support students with special needs. One key takeaway is the need for enhanced training and preparation for principals in understanding and addressing the complexities of special education. The research underscores the importance of equipping educational leaders with the necessary tools and resources to promote inclusive practices and support the diverse needs of all students, ensuring equitable access to quality education. Check it out for some interesting insights!  https://lnkd.in/dPaD2CZB