Living With Histories We Do Not Know

My View

Prior to Brown v. Board of Education, up to 50 percent of teachers were Black in the 17 dual-system states that by state law and custom operated racially segregated public schools. Today, no state approaches that level.

In fact, only 7 percent of the nation’s 3.2 million teachers, 11 percent of 93,000 principals and fewer than 3 percent of nearly 14,000 superintendents are Black. The underrepresentation of Black principals and teachers in the educator workforce, and the current struggle to recruit and retain Black teachers especially, is tied to a history that we live with but do not know.