Reducing Discipline Disparities by Expanding the Black Teacher Pipeline: A Descriptive Analysis of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District

• DOI: 10.1007/s11256-020-00558-y
• Publication Date: 2020-01-24T19:04:11Z
• Authors: John A. Williams; Alicia Davis; Bettie R. Butler
• Keywords: 4. Education; 05 social sciences; 10. No inequality; 0503 education

There is now a burgeoning of literature that addresses the effects of teacher racial identity on school discipline. Scholars have recently found evidence to support the hypothesis that exposure to Black teachers can significantly reduce suspensions for same-race identity students; this being particularly true for Black students in North Carolina at all grade levels. Still, additional inquiries are required to explicate how this can be implemented into reality, with a limited Black teacher workforce. To expand upon this new body of literature, the present study utilizes 12 years of employment data, and historical factors which have influenced the recruitment, hiring and retention of qualified Black teachers in the largest urban school district in North Carolina, Charlotte-Mecklenburg. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of our findings, suggesting that concerted efforts to hire and retain Black teachers should center upon drawing from currently employed teaching assistants, through a multimodal, collaborative approach. It is our intention that this article is read by teachers, school leaders, teacher education programs and policymakers.