Education advocates and researchers say the discrepancy between the number of minority students and minority teachers in Connecticut leads to disadvantages for students of color.
Around 45 percent of Connecticut’s public school population are students of color, but the vast majority of Connecticut teachers are white. Only 8.3 percent are people of color.
Gwen Samuel, president and founder of the Connecticut Parents Union, wants to change that. She says the difference translates to higher suspension and expulsion rates for children of color.
“This is all about being intentional, not assuming that things will just get better overtime. They will only get better over time if we put the effort to make things better,” Samuel said.
She told the State Board of Education they need to adopt policies that put more diverse faces in the front of Connecticut classrooms.