Invest in Educators: Mobilizing Parents as Advocates for Black Teachers

Black teachers are essential and fundamental partners in the education system. Yet, they are often an overlooked and undervalued stakeholder group when creating education policies and strategies for advocacy engagement. Research shows that having minority teachers benefits not only minority students but also all students. In fact, Black teachers positively impact test 10 scores and decrease absences by more than 20% for all students—no matter their race or ethnicity

In a UNCF report, “Hear Us, Believe Us: Centering African American Parent Voices in K-12 Education,” we recommended that the K-12 sector invest in Black teachers because exposure to at least one Black teacher in grades 3-5 had a meaningful effect on students’ long-run outcomes such as educational attainment and enrollment in college. As a result of these findings, UNCF, in partnership with the Center for Black Educator Development, created a toolkit entitled “Hear Us, Believe Us, Invest in Us: Helping Parents Advocate for Black Teachers” to help mobilize parents to advocate for more Black teachers. Building on insights from the toolkit, the session will discuss tips and tools for advocating for more Black teachers with the support of locally elected officials, HBCUs, assistant and district superintendents, parent-teacher organizations, student-led organizations, and community advocacy groups. We want family and community engagement staff to have the tools to not only advocate for Black teachers themselves, but to also equip parents in their schools and communities to take action as well.

In the current environment, we need a cadre of parent advocates highlighting the critical importance of Black educators. This session supports parents’ efforts to find practical, action-oriented resources designed to increase the representation of Black teachers in K-12 schools. We want participants to “invest in educators” because our children and communities need advocates to invest in their future.