Educator Diversity
New York State’s educator workforce falls far short in representing the rich diversity of its students, leaving many students of color without access to teachers or school leaders of the same race or ethnicity as them.
At the same time, public schools have difficulties retaining teachers of color, and students of color and teachers of color are disproportionately concentrated in schools with the lowest teacher retention rates. And more than half of students in NYS public schools attend a school without any school leaders of color.
Research shows a diverse educator workforce positively impacts students from all racial and ethnic backgrounds. Investing in recruiting and retaining educators and attracing school leaders of color to the profession is fundamental to making that a reality in New York.
School Leader Diversity in New York State
Principals and school leaders significantly impact student academic achievement, among the many other ways they are responsible for and care for students and the learning environment. Principals set the tone for high expectations in classroom instruction, school climate, and teacher hiring and retention. Particularly, schools with principals of color have more diverse teachers.
Yet in New York, school-level leadership does not represent the racial and ethnic diversity of the student population in NYS public schools, expanding understandings of the educator diversity landscape in the state.
Retaining Teachers of Color in New York State
Our analysis, which features data from a four-year period between the 2018 and 2022 school years, also found that charter schools, New York City schools, and schools in Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers, and Syracuse have some of the lowest retention rates in the state.
Teacher Diversity and Retention Interactive Data Tool
In our interactive data tool, users can search for school districts across New York State and see how they are doing in representing the diversity of students and retaining teachers from diverse backgrounds