Black Panther Proves That Our Kids Need More Black Superheroes, Both on the Screen and in the Classroom

I am looking forward to the premiere of “Black Panther” with the same excitement I bring to planning my birthday month. (Yes, I said month.)…

White Women Are Going to Have to Do a Lot More Than Just Thank Black Women, We Need to Get to Work

The Black women of Alabama saved their state and the nation from would-be Sen. Roy Moore. They answered the call. Seems to me that we…

Coffee Break: Jared Joiner on Why Education Should Be the Leader in Advancing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Jared Joiner is the executive director of strategy and communications for the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD), where he ensures students have the tools…

You Can Be Teacher of the Year and Still Get Fired for Being Gay

I feel I’m way too young to say I have a place in history, but it is LGBT History Month and I am staking claim.…

VIDEO: This Detroit Teacher Uses Hip-Hop Literacy to Engage His Students and the Community

I began teaching at 22. Back in my hometown of Detroit and fresh out of college, I thought I had all the answers.…

Making the Case for More Men of Color in Early Education

As educators, we have an obligation to give our students every opportunity to succeed. Parents rely on us to ensure their children are armed with…

Damn! NO Black Teachers Are Being Hired? This Is Crazy!!

I have a serious inquiry for school administrators: Is a teacher applicant’s race a factor when you consider hiring them? Let me be more specific:…

Hispanic Heritage Month Is Every Month for Latino Educators

Today marks the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month, an annual celebration of the histories and stories of the Latino diaspora. In most of the country,…

Want to Know How to Get Minorities Into Teaching? Just Ask the Students.

I remembered Oscar from the previous year when he was a sixth-grade student assigned to the other sixth-grade social studies teacher. He was quiet when…

Up Until Ninth Grade, I Had Zero Male Teachers of Color. Here’s Why That Matters.

For 10 years—the first decade I was in school—all my teachers were White women. As a Mexican-American kid, I didn’t get the chance to have…