Building Bridges Not Walls: Developing Pathways for Latinx Educators in the United States

• In Event: Sheraton Roundtable Session 6
  In Roundtable Session: Accounting for Race in Teacher Preparation and Retention

Abstract

This two-year qualitative case study highlights a collaboration between a school district and its neighboring institution of higher education to recruit Latina/o educators. While the community serves a school system over 40% Latino, the teachers coming out of the local colleges are mostly white and female. The program covered tuition and paraprofessional positions for undergraduates. Using a framework of borderland and youth empowerment theories, the researchers explored (1) how to create partnerships amongst universities and school districts that privilege students of color, (2) how to create spaces for students of color to gain the tools necessary to navigate dominant culture without assimilating, and (3) how to develop teacher education programs that result in a burgeoning cohort of teachers of color.

Authors

• Sheri Carmel Hardee, University of North Georgia

• Lauren C Johnson, University of North Georgia