Diversity

Education news, analysis, and opinion around school diversity, including racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity, as well as coverage of gender diversity and LGBTQ issues
Silhouettes showing diversity.
aelitta/DigitalVision Vectors
Teaching Profession See How Diverse Your State's Education Workforce Is
Our interactive visualization shows how states stack up in creating a more representative teaching force.
Madeline Will, December 12, 2023
3 min read
Teenage student taking notes during class
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Mathematics What the Research Says How Schools Can Diversify Math Course-Taking
Low-income students and students of color take fewer advanced-math courses—or start taking them later—than their white peers.
Sarah D. Sparks, December 7, 2023
4 min read
A conceptual image of a female being paid less than a male.
hyejin kang/iStock/Getty
School & District Management A New Study Details Gender and Racial Disparities in the Superintendent's Office
Women and people of color are less likely than their white male counterparts to be appointed superintendent directly from a principal post.
Caitlynn Peetz, December 5, 2023
6 min read
Clint Mitchell, superintendent for Colonial Beach Public Schools in Colonial Beach, Va., visits a class at Colonial Beach Elementary School on Nov. 6, 2023.
Clint Mitchell, superintendent for Colonial Beach Public Schools in Colonial Beach, Va., visits a class at Colonial Beach Elementary School on Nov. 6, 2023.
Brian Palmer for Education Week
Recruitment & Retention How to Find—and Keep—a Diverse Team of Teachers
Principals and district leaders believe diversifying the educator workforce is important—but recruitment and retention often prove tricky.
Mark Lieberman, December 4, 2023
8 min read
Educators listen to Rose Chu's presentation at the Edifying, Elevating, and Uplifting Teachers of Color conference in Minneapolis, Minn., on Oct. 20, 2023.
Educators listen to Rose Chu's presentation at the Edifying, Elevating, and Uplifting Teachers of Color conference in Minneapolis, Minn., on Oct. 20, 2023.
Andrea Ellen Reed for Education Week
Special Report Strategies for Building a Diverse Staff
Delve into the link between diverse staff and students’ academic performance and explore strategies to recruit and retain diverse staff.
December 4, 2023
A student listens to instruction during an 8th grade science class at Aptos Middle School on January 27, 2020 in San Francisco.
A student listens to instruction during an 8th grade science class at Aptos Middle School on January 27, 2020 in San Francisco. Scholars and legal experts are still debating whether the Proposition 209 era in California offers lessons for the nation in the wake of the Supreme Court ending affirmative action in college admissions.
Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle via AP
Equity & Diversity Will the Ban on Affirmative Action Hurt Diversity? Look to California
Proposition 209 prohibited the use of race in education. Its effects were debated before the U.S. Supreme Court this year.
Mark Walsh, December 4, 2023
11 min read
Educators chat with each other during the Edifying, Elevating, and Uplifting Teachers of Color conference in Minneapolis, Minn., on Oct. 20, 2023.
Educators chat with each other during the Edifying, Elevating, and Uplifting Teachers of Color conference in Minneapolis, Minn., on Oct. 20, 2023. Retaining educators within the profession requires paying attention to the quality of induction support they get, ongoing mentorship, and how well prepared school administrators are.
Andrea Ellen Reed for Education Week
Recruitment & Retention The Role Mentors and School Leaders Play in Retaining Teachers of Color
Beyond higher pay, experts share key factors that can keep teachers of color in the profession and even at a given school.
Ileana Najarro, December 4, 2023
6 min read
Clint Mitchell, superintendent for Colonial Beach Public Schools in Colonial Beach, Va., visits a class at Colonial Beach Elementary School on Nov. 6, 2023. New EdWeek Research Center survey data shows how school leaders plan to go about boosting the diversity of their teaching corps.
Clint Mitchell, superintendent for Colonial Beach Public Schools in Colonial Beach, Va., visits a class at Colonial Beach Elementary School on Nov. 6, 2023.
Brian Palmer for Education Week
Recruitment & Retention From Our Research Center Districts' Strategies to Diversify Teaching Staff, in Charts
New EdWeek Research Center survey data highlights how districts plan to recruit and retain more teachers of color.
Ileana Najarro, December 4, 2023
2 min read
Rose Chu, founder of Elevate Teaching, speaks about the value of teachers, encouraging people to be in the teaching profession and how to rebrand teaching so good teachers want to join the profession at the Edifying, Elevating, and Uplifting Teachers of Color conference in Minneapolis, Minn., on Oct. 20, 2023.
Rose Chu, the founder of Elevate Teaching, which seeks to build a teaching profession that serves diverse classrooms, speaks about how to rebrand teaching so good teachers want to join the profession at a conference in Minneapolis on Oct. 20, 2023.
Andrea Ellen Reed for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Quiz Quiz: What Are the Challenges and Strategies to Diversifying School Staff?
Test your knowledge of recruitment strategies, the role of mentorship in retaining teachers of color, and more.
Daniela Franco Brown, December 4, 2023
1 min read
Peggy Carr, Commissioner of the National Center for Education, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press about the National Assessment of Education Process on Oct. 21, 2022, in Washington.
Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press on Oct. 21, 2022, in Washington. She spoke at a Nov. 29, 2023, conference in Washington on the growing diversity of the nation's suburban schools.
Alex Brandon/AP
Equity & Diversity The Perception of Suburban Schools as White and Wealthy Needs to Change, Researchers Say
The student body of suburban schools roughly mirrors that of the nation. But a view of suburban schools as mostly white persists.
Libby Stanford, November 29, 2023
3 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
Teaching Profession Opinion Teachers of Color Face Unique Challenges. Here Are Some of Them
Teaching is hard enough, but educators of color face additional—often invisible—tasks.
Larry Ferlazzo, November 14, 2023
16 min read
Collaged photo illustration of Black men teachers and positive role models
Vanessa Solis/Education Week via Canva
Recruitment & Retention Opinion 3 Solutions for the Black Male Teacher Shortage
I was well out of college before my mentor persuaded me to become a teacher. Here’s how we can start reaching Black men earlier.
Sharif El-Mekki, November 7, 2023
5 min read
Scholastic reversed its decision to silo books about LGBTQ+ characters and people of color into an optional collection starting next January, based on feedback from authors and illustrators.
Scholastic reversed its decision to silo books about LGBTQ+ characters and people of color into an optional collection called "Share Every Story, Celebrate Every Voice," starting next January, based on feedback from authors and illustrators.
Photo courtesy of Debby Vandersande
Reading & Literacy Scholastic Reverses Controversial Decision to ‘Segregate’ Diverse Books
Four public school librarians and two experts said Scholastic's reversal on making diverse books optional is a step in the right direction.
Eesha Pendharkar, October 25, 2023
7 min read
Happy Black female student celebrating while receiving exam results from her Black female teacher in the classroom.
iStock/Getty
Teaching Profession Here's What High School Students of Color Think About Being a Teacher
New research asked high school students of color and Indigenous students what they think about a career in teaching.
Madeline Will, October 17, 2023
6 min read