April 2021 Advisor

DIVERSIFYING

APRIL 2021 CEA ADVISOR 11

CEA SUPPORTS MEASURE TO BRING MORE TEACHERS OF COLOR INTO CONNECTICUT CLASSROOMS

“Diversifying Connecticut’s teaching force is crucial to the vitality, success, and excellence of all of our schools,” CEA Vice President Tom Nicholas told the legislature’s Education Committee, which is considering a bill to improve minority teacher recruitment and retention. If passed, the measure would promote teaching as a career option to high school students, require implicit bias and anti-bias training for school district personnel responsible for hiring, and establish a minority candidate residency program. Homegrown educators Nicholas shared that, through a grant received from NEA, CEA is working to grow future educator programs in middle and high schools modeled after West Hartford’s Future Educators of Diversity program. “Having teachers of color improves the experience of students of all racial backgrounds,” Nicholas told legislators. “Some of the benefits include decreased dropout rates and disciplinary actions and increased achievement for students of color, especially if those students have had a teacher of color in front of them by the second grade.” State Representative Tammy Exum, a former elementary school teacher and West Hartford Board of Education vice chair, told Nicholas that she was glad to hear CEA is working to expand on programs like West Hartford’s. “It’s a wonderful example of being very intentional in growing a program and tapping into high schoolers who may not think of being educators and then having that experience and exposure,” she said. West Hartford students who go on to graduate from college with teaching degrees are guaranteed an interview with West Hartford Public Schools. “We have had some of those students who went through the program get hired and work in the district, so it’s effective, and it needs to be much bigger, much broader, so I’m really grateful to see this legislation before us,” Exum said. Hiring and retaining Nicholas told legislators that he would like to know the current count of Connecticut certified teachers of color who are not employed as teachers. “As of two years ago, the count was nearly 600 teachers of color who were certified but did not have a teaching job,” Nicholas said. “That signifies to me that implicit bias is a huge problem in our retention and hiring practices.” In written testimony, Westport literacy coach Faith Sweeney told legislators that the bill should include more emphasis on retaining teachers of color. “I work in a predominantly white community that is increasing in diversity as we speak. Having a teaching population that mirrors our student population is vital. All students, Black and white, need to know how to interact with people who do not look like them, act like them, or speak like them,” Sweeney wrote. “It is not enough to recruit a pool of teachers of color without the

the program will have put 25 new teachers of color into CREC classrooms. If the legislature provides funding to expand from one site to four, the program could create an additional 60 teachers of color next year. The CREC residency program continues support for participants into their first three years as classroom teachers and beyond, providing ongoing professional development and connection with fellow educators of color. Mitchell reported that first-year program participant Cyemone Douglas, who is now in her first year of teaching, shared, “I am often asked why I wanted to join the TRP family. The answer is simple. TRP is a uniquely designed program that took a risk on 12 individuals of color. When I was finishing my residency, I instilled in my students the importance of taking risks as a starting place for change. History has taught us that without risk takers, history remains the same. TRP took a risk, and now we have more teachers of color in our classrooms—more teachers of color who represent the students we serve, more teachers of color who bring a different perspective to educating the whole child.”

Bridgeport teacher William King, shown here prior to the pandemic, participated in CEA’s Teaching Is Calling You campaign to diversify the state’s teaching force. “It’s important to have teachers whose experiences are similar to yours,” he says.

consideration of ways to retain them, especially in predominantly white communities, where they often face racial tension, bias, and discrimination.” Teacher residency program “CEA also supports innovative teacher preparation programs that attract more aspiring teachers of color to our public schools, particularly when they help aspiring teachers address persistent institutional and financial barriers,” Nicholas said. CEA has worked with CREC on such a program that is currently in its second year and provides financial support for teaching

candidates as well as mentorship by teachers. Ushawnda Mitchell, program coordinator of CREC’s Teacher Residency Program (TRP), told legislators, “The alternate route to elementary certification has been designed to address the many barriers Connecticut has faced when it comes to diversifying its teaching staff. The program allows candidates to earn a salary while completing their yearlong residency and guarantees participants a position upon successfully completing the program. High-quality teacher preparation is key to retention.” As of September, Mitchell said,

Connecticut Identifies Racism as a Public Health Crisis Legislation spotlights systemic patterns of inequity and gives every resident and student equal opportunities for success

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Connecticut has taken the crucial step of exposing Connecticut’s inequities and identifying racism as a public health crisis. Senate leaders and members of the Public Health Committee introduced SB 1, which includes the first-ever legislation aimed at eliminating systemic racism in our state, ensuring all residents and students, regardless of race, have equal opportunities to succeed. “We believe that to achieve racial and social justice, we must acknowledge and identify the practices that deny rights, opportunities, and equality,” said CEA President Jeff Leake, who testified in support of the bill during a public hearing on March 17. “We praise Senate leaders and members of the Public Health Committee for taking this first important step to recognize that institutional racism is a public health crisis and demand changes to policies, programs, and practices that condone or ignore unequal treatment based upon race.” The pandemic has further exacerbated deep economic disparities in our state, including a lack of

and towns, years of systemic racism and unconscious bias have limited opportunities for Connecticut families and students, contributing to the growing education gap, which our teachers see firsthand. We must all support efforts to achieve racial equity through proactive and preventative measures, especially in our schools, so that every child has access to equitable, high-quality education.” CEA and its members have a deep and long- standing commitment to human rights, social justice, and equity and are committed to eradicating the institutional racism that strips so many students of opportunities. Educators do all they can to ensure that our schools are safe, caring environments that help all students reach their full potential. Emphasizing that SB 1: An Act Equalizing Comprehensive Access to Mental, Behavioral, and Physical Health Care in Response to the Pandemic is “an important and much-needed measure to help us achieve equity and social justice in our state,” Leake testified, “We strongly urge its passage.”

funding for critical services that disproportionately impact people of color. COVID-19 has magnified stark racial and health disparities, especially for Black and brown residents, who are getting sick and dying from COVID-19 at a much greater rate than their white peers. “Combating racism, erasing inequities, and advancing racial justice are critical to every aspect of our society, including education, housing, medical care, law enforcement, and more,” said Leake. “In too many of our cities