It’s not all doom and gloom. Researchers say HBCUs and incubator programs are revitalizing the Black educator pipeline nationwide. Here’s how you can best cover the Renaissance.
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It’s no secret that Black educators are underrepresented in the workforce.
Data shows that there are nearly 4 million public school teachers in the U.S., charged with educating around 51 million young people. And almost 80% of today’s K-12 educators identify as white and female.
And while Black educators, in general, are becoming few and far between, that number dwindles to a blip on the radar in regards to Black males entering—and staying—in the profession. Only 6% of all educators nationwide are Black, and less than 2% of them are male.
This small pool can leave a gap for education reporters interested in highlighting a critically, underreported sector of the educator workforce. With such low numbers, it can be difficult to effectively cover the group in a meaningful manner.
Yet, research has proven that the presence of Black educators positively affects children in lasting ways, says Constance Lindsay, an assistant professor of education at The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
“When kids have a Black educator, they are more likely to finish high school and aspire to go to college in comparison to Black kids who have never had one,” Lindsay said. She also notes that the study found that for those who went onto college, those students were more likely to earn a degree.
Lindsay has even found results that suggest when Black students are matched to Black teachers, they are also less likely to be identified for special education, particularly economically disadvantaged Black male students who are more likely to be diagnosed with intellectual disabilities.
“So, we know kids benefit from having Black teachers,” she said.
Lindsay says research has also shown that Black students with Black teachers are less likely to be suspended or expelled from school. “Black educators tend to have an impact on Black students and have an outsized impact on Black boys,” Lindsay noted.
But while Lindsay says the studies can show an empirical relationship between the outcomes of Black students with Black educators, it’s hard to do the deep analysis of what that relationship looks like specifically for Black male educators.
The reason—there simply aren’t enough.
“In this particular study where we used North Carolina data, Black males made up about 2% of the teaching population, so the sample sizes are low,” she said.
However, that doesn’t mean work isn’t being done to change that. In fact, the work never stopped, and here’s how journalists can follow it.
Incubator, “Grow Your Own” programs focused on recruiting Black men to the classroom are popping up all over the country. One example is the Leading Men Fellowship, which trains young Black and Latino men in eight cities to become early literacy instructors in preschool classrooms across the country.
The Teacher Academy of Maryland is a state-funded career and technical education course for high school students who wish to pursue an associate degree in education. In Boston, He is Me Institute offers a fellowship and network to Black male college students interested in heading into the profession after graduation.
Started in Philadelphia, the Center for Black Educator Development supported 54 fellows through its Future Black Teachers of Excellence Fund in 2024 as a means of revitalizing the national Black teacher pipeline while growing its membership core to more than 10,000 participants.
And according to the United Negro College Fund, the largest minority education nonprofit that focuses on helping Black students attend and graduate from college, Historically Black Colleges and Universities are continuing to build on their missionary efforts to support future Black educators through fostering those relationships with their own arsenal of Black academics.
These efforts include offering financial support, such as scholarships and tuition assistance; establishing mentorship programs that pair students with experienced Black educators, and creating partnerships with education-focused organizations like UNCF.
According to experts, HBCUs also prioritize culturally responsive teaching practices and community engagement, ensuring that graduates are well-prepared to thrive in classrooms and serve as role models for the next generation of students.
In a report, UNCF detailed how Fayetteville State, Alabama A&M University, Albany State University and Huston-Tillotson University are all among the top 25 HBCUs nationwide that are actively producing Black college graduates who go on to become teachers.
Meredith Anderson, director of K-12 Research for UNCF’s Advocacy team, says these programs have long been based on the understanding that Black teachers not only motivate Black students, but also play a vital role in recruiting them as well.
“Claflin University has developed a program geared at recruiting more Black male teachers,” she stated. “Delaware State has been focused on recruiting Black male teachers and retaining them … Xavier University has a teacher-in residence program that has been producing amazing results.”
Anderson says talking about these programs is important; not only have HBCUs realized that there is a need, but they are actively putting their money where their mouth is.
“Our institutions have high expectations of our students,” Anderson said. “These are lessons we can learn because they are setting the bar high.”
Anderson’s sentiment was echoed by Keeley Copridge, who says success of Black educators at HBCUs is also apparent in the positive engagement shown, oftentimes, in the communities the teachers reside in. Copridge is a senior research associate for UNCF’s Frederick D. Patterson Research Institute.
“That’s why having teachers of the same race in communities like their own is so important,” Copridge said. “Specifically, Black male teachers add a different perspective … they create a different environment.”
Copridge also says that relationships extend beyond just students. “We conducted a survey with Black parents, a few years back, to see how they felt when their child had a Black teacher,” she said. “We found that more parents felt respected and that they could come talk to the teachers more.”
In turn, UNCF is now tapping into the legacy of advocacy at HBCUs to mobilize behind Black parents as the community works in partnership to have their voices heard around the need for more Black teachers in their classrooms.
As efforts continue to diversify the teaching workforce, it’s clear that increasing the number of Black male educators will not only strengthen education for Black students but for all students—fostering more inclusive, supportive, and understanding classrooms.
For education reporters covering this issue, it’s crucial to approach the topic thoughtfully and with attention to both the data and the personal stories behind the numbers.
Here are five tips for covering the challenges and opportunities in Black educator representation, ensuring the story is told with accuracy, depth and respect.
Work is being done to grow the pipeline of Black educators..
Anderson suggests avoiding approaching the angle with what is already known. “Yes. There is a lack of Black teachers,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean we aren’t doing the work that needs to be done.”
Whenever education is discussed in the media, certain issues dominate the conversation—low literacy rates, chronic school absenteeism, and discipline problems. These issues are critical, no doubt, but there are other angles that can often be overlooked.
By shifting the media narrative to also highlight these positive efforts, Anderson believes reporters could shift public perception—from viewing education as a failing system to recognizing the ongoing efforts that are actually producing results
This, she argues, is not just a change in tone, but a necessary shift for creating long-term change. “That alone can make a difference in the level of outreach these programs get,” Anderson said.
Copridge says there are a few barriers that many teachers, regardless of race, are faced with in the current climate, such as the less-than-attractive pay.
“Education programs are faced with competing majors,” she said. “You have other majors that will have more attractive pay after graduation.”
But she also notes underreported barriers that are rooted in many of the same racial barriers imposed on Black students seeking to progress – teacher certification processes, systemic bias in hiring, lack of access to other Black role models in the industry and student loan debt.
“Let’s be honest … the teacher certification process was established to be exclusionary,” Copride noted. “That’s what its purpose is.”
But, according to Copride, despite the disparity, research doesn’t support that a teacher’s difficulty to pass the licensure exam result in better – or worse – outcomes for their students.
“If you look at the validity of these certifications, in no way, shape or form do they prove that a teacher having a low certification score directly impacts a student’s academic acumen,” she said.
Lindsay says it’s important to remember education is political and that the current climate is hostile to a concept that may be central to many aspiring Black educators — the retelling of their own history.
“We are witnessing a national trend where Black teachers are constantly being faced with asking if it is worth it anymore,” Lindsay said. “If you aren’t covering education with an understanding of the political lens, then you aren’t covering it truly.”
Adding the perspective of the communities most affected by the impact of Black educators is something Lindsay says is seemingly disappearing.
While speaking to experts is a good option, she suggests making sure you include the students and families who stand to benefit from more Black teachers.
“It’s good practice to talk to the Black kids to learn how having Black teachers changed their life,” Lindsay said. “It gives a layer of nuance that we can’t assume anymore. Hear it directly from the source and guide your reporting around it.”
When covering the decline in the Black male educator pipeline, avoid framing HBCU education as lesser or their graduates as underqualified. Experts say it only dilutes the work and role these institutions have played in educating generations of teachers.
“We have to get away from this narrative that just because it’s at an HBCU, that it is lesser,” Anderson said. “We need to reach out to the K-12 level to see how students value HBCUs because we often hear from counselors about how they aren’t pushing these programs because they don’t know enough.”
However, if you are looking for a place to examine bias through accountability, Anderson says journalists could start with central offices within districts to address the role they play in recruitment and retention of Black male staff.
“We need to go back to our central office staff and see if they harbor any implicit bias,” she said. “Are they doing anti-bias training, anti-racism training to check their own bias when they are looking to recruit?”
And, with the latest changes to the political landscape, it will be even more important to understand the role politics play in education and how staff are trained, given national rollbacks on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Knowing the context will be vital in monitoring local school districts’ ability to foster growth in this area.
That one professor in J-school wasn’t lying—the experts all agree that building a strong, genuine relationship with sources will give you the insight you need to accurately report on the subject matter.
“It’s important to just really lean into your sources because they are the ones who are on the ground and can give you the perspective,” Copridge said.
For reporters, Anderson says that means showcasing a willingness to use those networks to hear from voices that are closer to the communities you wish to enter.
“Lean on us,” she said. “We are always happy to connect reporters with the people who are doing this work because we want this lane to be asset based. We want to see more highlights of not only our job but also highlights of the resilience of our teachers, our students and our institutions as well.”
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