Where Are the Teachers of Color?

*The tip of the iceberg: In Boston  there is one Latino teacher for every 52 Latino students; in New York City 85 percent of  students are racial minorities, and 60 percent of the teachers are white. I’m sure the story repeats itself in cities and schools across the ocuntry. VL

By Motoko Rich, New York Times 

GROWING up in the 1970s and ’80s in the Chicago suburb of Blue Island, Ill., Gladys Marquez, the daughter of Mexican immigrants, never once had a Hispanic teacher. Sometimes, when trying to explain to her parents her plans for college — or even why she wanted to play softball or try out for the cheerleading team — she wished she had a mentor who shared her background.

“It would have been nice to have a teacher in the classroom who could help you bridge over and help you become a better version of yourself,” she said in a recent interview.

Now Ms. Marquez is herself a high school teacher in Blue Island. But while nearly half of the students at the school are Hispanic, Ms. Marquez is still one of a small minority of Latino teachers in the building.

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[Photo by BES Photos/Flickr]