Solving some of the greatest problems facing humanity -- pandemics, climate change, access to clean water - will depend on a diverse STEM workforce creating socially just solutions. Thus, there is a need to broaden participation in STEM to bring diverse perspectives to bear on these complex problems. Broadening STEM participation relies on…

Despite many differences across Pennsylvania's rural school districts, band programs face similar recruitment, retention, and matriculation challenges. Rural school districts in Pennsylvania account for 235 of the 499 school districts in Pennsylvania while educating less than 20 percent of the student population in the state. In addition, rural…

America's schools are more diverse than ever, but the teachers are still mostly White. Overwhelmingly, the research says that Teachers of Color in classrooms provide numerous benefits for all students (e.g., Ahmad & Boser, 2014; Archinstein et al., 2010; Cherng & Halpin, 2016; Partelow et al., 2017; Perlman et., 2016; Villegas & Lucas,…

Purpose: To draw attention to the known problems and anti-Black bias in public and private schools, examine the lack of recruitment of Foundational Black American (FBA) male teachers, and determine if creating separate learning spaces and hiring FBA male teachers will help or hinder the academic success of FBA male students in grades 6 through 12.…

Reports of ecological disturbances - wildfires, loss of biodiversity, drought, contaminated drinking water, extreme temperatures - fill the news. People have to navigate and manage these challenges. To do so effectively, requires that people are environmentally literate (EL), demonstrating an understanding of the problems, so they are motivated to…

The teaching profession is in peril. Teacher recruitment and teacher retention are issues that have compounded the teacher shortage crisis, particularly in Black and Latinx communities. Research has demonstrated that there are a plethora of academic and socio-emotional benefits when Black and Latinx teachers are educating Black and Latinx…

The purpose of this qualitative, multiple case study is to explore the different pathways into teaching in rural primary and middle schools. As a conceptual framework, the continuum of teacher learning and occupational choice theory were used to study teacher preparation and recruitment. Research participants included twelve teachers (seven male…

Classrooms across America have become increasingly racially and ethnically diverse. Little attention has been paid to where minority teachers tend to be employed, what happens to minority teachers once they are employed, and to the role of the employing organizations in teacher staffing problems. The purpose of this quantitative comparative study…

The achievement gap for students of color has existed in this country for decades. Previous research has shown that even when controlling for factors such as socio-economic status, Black and Hispanic students still underperform White students by a significant margin. This study sought to determine if teacher social justice attitudes are related to…

Studies have shown a direct correlation between positive school culture and increases in student achievement (Bulach et al, 1995; Goddard et al, 2000; Kaplan & Owings, 2013; McCarley et al, 2014; Thapa et al, 2013; Whitaker, 2001). The literature also suggests that the culture within a school can be positively impacted through effective…

This executive position paper proposes an innovative Career and Technical Pathway for secondary education. The Secondary Teacher Education Pathway (STEP) is a teacher education pathway for high school students who are interested in teaching as a profession. The goal of this Program is to increase the number of African American male teachers in…

The hiring of middle school teachers to positively impact student achievement--is this a process of teacher selection or teacher attraction for schools, respectively, with low teacher turnover and schools with high teacher turnover? Since research indicates that the most important variable influencing student achievement is having a highly…