Guest Editors’ Introduction: The State of Teachers of Color

The current teaching environment for teachers of Color is troublesome and often contentious. Teacher preparation programs worry too often about the discomfort of White teachers, who make up the majority of the teaching profession, to the neglect of the needs of teachers of Color (Amos, 2010; Montecinos, 2004; Sleeter, 2011). Although efforts to diversify the teacher workforce are taking place in various university-based teacher preparation programs (Sleeter, Neal, & Kumashiro, 2015), the national conversation on the need for a diverse group of teachers has waned in comparison to what it was 20 years ago (Dilworth & Coleman, 2014). Unfortunately, contemporary events have reified negatives narratives in the media and the profession regarding the relevancy and competency of teachers of Color. For example, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, we witnessed the mass displacement of teachers of Color in the reconstructed, charter-school-dominated schooling system inNewOrleans (Buras, 2011). Moreover, the national media’s attention to the cheating scandal in the Atlanta Public Schools system portrayed Black teachers as criminals. Although the educators were accused of cheating on standardized tests, they were actually convicted of committing racketeering, a charge usually reserved for mobsters, gang leaders, and corrupt financial organizations (P. Jackson, 2015; Phelps, 2015). Indeed, if the educators are guilty, then suitable punishment is appropriate (i.e., suspension or the revocation of their teaching license). However, in the case of the Atlanta teachers, the racial profiling and scapegoating of Black teachers are reflective of an unjust schooling system that perpetually fails both students and teachers of Color (Cooper, 2015). Much more needs to be learned about how to equitably and effectively educate students of Color and teachers of Color are deemed a necessary part of that educational reform process. In an extensive review of the literature, Villegas and Irvine (2010) identified three empirically-based arguments for the benefits that teachers of Color bring to K-12 schooling: (1) they serve as rolemodels to all students; (2) since they tend to work in high-minority urban schools, they reduce the acute shortage of educators; and (3) many of them are particularly well-suited for teaching students of Color because they bring to their work a deep understanding of the cultural experiences of these learners. According to the academic literature, teachers of Color tend to have higher expectations of students of Color (Oates, 2003; Uhlenberg & Brown, 2002), are more likely to utilize culturally relevant pedagogies (Dixson & Dingus, 2008; Irizarry & Donaldson, 2012; Lynn, 2006), and serve as cultural brokers with the community (Eddy & Easton-Brooks, 2011; García-Nevarez, Stafford, & Arias, 2005; Gomez & Rodriguez, 2011). Additionally, teachers of Color are more likely to engage in racial discourse (Thompson, 2004) and challenge racial inequality (Kohli, 2009). While it is not guaranteed that every racial minority teacher will be effective with students of Color (Achinstein, Ogawa, Sexton, & Freitas, 2010), it has been shown that teachers of Color play a role in remedying racial disparities of achievement (Villegas & Irvine, 2010). Though this may seem like “double-talking,” where teachers of Color are framed as both the problem and the solution (Jackson, Boutte, & Wilson, 2013), understanding their experiences and supporting teachers of Color are significantly understudied elements to improving academic opportunities for students of Color. Teachers of Color continue to be underrepresented within US public schools. Students of Color are steadily increasing and are predicted to comprise over 50% of K-12 students by 2020, while teachers of Color make up just 14% of the US teaching force (Feistritzer, 2011). In