Black Men in Education

We are the few, the proud. No, we are not the Marines. We are Black men in education. There’s not that many of us, especially at the Elementary school level. What are some of the reasons for the low numbers and what can we do to change this trend?

According to USAfacts.org, Black men make up 1.3% of all public school teachers. The number of Black men that are teachers has decreased from 6.5% in 2017 to the current 1.3% in 2021. There is also an underrepresentation of Black men in school administration. Just 2% of school principals are Black men.

I served as a teacher for fourteen years. The school districts where I served have been considered suburban areas. In every meeting or training I was one of at the most four to five Black males. In some instances, I was the only one. I was also the first Black male teacher that a lot of my students had.

Why is it that there are so few Black men serving as educators? Society has stigmatized careers in education. There is a prevailing thought that education is a field for women. This is, in my opinion, why salaries for educators lags so far behind the private sector. The thought of not being able to provide for your family on an educator’s salary is a real fear. Some Black men steer away from education because of the less than positive experiences that they had while in school.

There are some things that can be done to encourage more Black males to join the profession. Representation matters, starting from a young age people need to see what they can be. Exposing Black boys to professions in education at a young age could be useful. Black educator professional groups could incorporate programs that mentor young Black men and give them insight into careers in education.

I’ve been blessed to have a few Black men that have molded my career thus far. My high school English teacher Michael Knuckles is one of them. He had a way of breathing life into reading that made it interesting. He also held students accountable for getting their work done. Anthony Sims gave me my first opportunity to become a teacher. Dr. Shaun Perry gave me the opportunity to become a grade level team leader.

I truly believe that Black men are an untapped resource for our future educators. There must be real recruitment efforts made to change the current reality. How can we make our schools places where Black men feel that they can serve comfortably and effectively? What ideas do you have to bring more Black men into careers in education?