“In seeing difference, we realize how similar we are.” Drew Ishii, an Asian American male teacher at the Sage Hill School in Orange County, Calif., consistently finds opportunities to share with his students his life experiences as an Asian American male – from how he grew up, to his love of Beyonce and K dramas. He finds it’s an opportunity for his Asian students to have their experiences validated, and a chance for his white students to realize that his life consists of many experiences – some completely different than theirs, and some quite similar. Asian American men are rare in the K-12 teaching workforce. Amid the increased violence and racist rhetoric against Asian Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the trauma of the Atlanta shootings at Asian-owned spas, he made space for all of his students to process their feelings – and in doing so was again reminded why it’s so important to have a diverse teacher population.
