The One Million Teachers of Color campaign has a goal of adding one million teachers of color and thirty-thousand leaders of color to the education workforce over the next decade. 

OUR PURPOSE

Our nation’s education system is at an inflection point. The COVID-19 pandemic has upended traditional teaching structures, exposing and exacerbating pervasive inequities in our schools. Schools across the country are facing their toughest staffing challenges in recent memory—at a moment when students need diverse, effective teachers more than ever.

It is hard to overstate the impact of teachers and leaders of color. Students spend nearly a third of their day in school. We know great school principals build great schools. When a school principal is a leader of color, research shows higher student achievement and better school outcomes specifically for teachers and children of color. Like great principals, teachers change lives. Decades of research has demonstrated that teachers of color produce positive academic, social-emotional and behavioral student outcomes. For example, a longitudinal study found that Black teachers in elementary schools increase the likelihood of Black students attending college and decrease the likelihood of dropping out of high school, particularly among Black males. Latinx students also have fewer unexcused absences when they have a Latinx teacher. 

We need a teacher workforce that reflects the diversity of our nation. We have a prime opportunity for a reset in our education system — one that will uplift all students and create a stronger workforce for decades to come. That’s why our Steering Committee has come together to add one million teachers of color and thirty-thousand leaders of color to the education workforce over the next decade. We will advocate for policies and practices that increase the number of teachers and leaders of color, support innovative pathways into the profession, advocate to remove barriers that prevent teachers of color from entering and remaining in the profession, and much more.

We have the potential to transform our education system in unprecedented ways so that students can emerge from school more prepared than ever to succeed — and consequently, strengthen our entire nation. Join us.