You don’t have to have children in school to know there is a serious problem in this country in regards to education. More and more of our urban school districts are threatening to inflate class sizes, while making pleas for more teachers. During the recent State of the Union address President Obama sent a message stating he wanted to increase the number of teachers within the next 10 years. Now we have Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Film Director Spike Lee making a call for more black males to enter into the field of education Duncan, Lee urge more black men to become teachers. What seems to be missing from all of these conversations is, How will the Central and Local governments pay for the influx of all these new teachers? Many school districts across the country are facing insurmountable budget short falls. One example is the Philadelphia School District, which is staring down a $400 million plus budget deficit this fall. No one seems to want to address the “White Elephant” in the room money.
African-American male teachers have been in high demand for at least a decade or more, the problem that many people do not want to address in attracting more African-American males or any male for that matter to the teaching profession is salary. Many programs have been instituted at universities across the country to attract more African-American males, an example is the “Call Me Mister” program, which guarantees participants free tuition as long as they pledge to become teachers and meet other requirements. No one goes into teaching for the money; there is something innate inside those individuals who become teachers that makes them want to make a difference. With tuition prices on the rise it becomes hard for college students to escape undergraduate studies without becoming in debt by the time they graduate. So for some, even though they feel the desire to become an educator monetary needs out-weigh the calling. Until this country is willing to address the need for an across the board increase in teacher wages there will continue to be a shortage of teachers especially African-American males.
Hope Initiative Party
H.I.P Wire 
S.O.S Teachers Needed
Posted: January 31, 2011 in Community, Education, Political News, Social Issues, UncategorizedTags: Commentary, Community, Education, Political, Politics, Social Issue
You don’t have to have children in school to know there is a serious problem in this country in regards to education. More and more of our urban school districts are threatening to inflate class sizes, while making pleas for more teachers. During the recent State of the Union address President Obama sent a message stating he wanted to increase the number of teachers within the next 10 years. Now we have Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Film Director Spike Lee making a call for more black males to enter into the field of education Duncan, Lee urge more black men to become teachers. What seems to be missing from all of these conversations is, How will the Central and Local governments pay for the influx of all these new teachers? Many school districts across the country are facing insurmountable budget short falls. One example is the Philadelphia School District, which is staring down a $400 million plus budget deficit this fall. No one seems to want to address the “White Elephant” in the room money.
African-American male teachers have been in high demand for at least a decade or more, the problem that many people do not want to address in attracting more African-American males or any male for that matter to the teaching profession is salary. Many programs have been instituted at universities across the country to attract more African-American males, an example is the “Call Me Mister” program, which guarantees participants free tuition as long as they pledge to become teachers and meet other requirements. No one goes into teaching for the money; there is something innate inside those individuals who become teachers that makes them want to make a difference. With tuition prices on the rise it becomes hard for college students to escape undergraduate studies without becoming in debt by the time they graduate. So for some, even though they feel the desire to become an educator monetary needs out-weigh the calling. Until this country is willing to address the need for an across the board increase in teacher wages there will continue to be a shortage of teachers especially African-American males.
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