SOE builds pipeline to attract diverse graduate students

BY: DR. JASON E. LANE, Interim Dean, Professor- The University at Albany’s School of Education is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion. This commitment is embedded throughout our curriculum, infused in our research agendas, and enacted through our meaningful engagement and collaborative efforts in local communities.

In many cases, issues of equity tie our research, teaching and service together. For example, masters students in the department of literacy teaching and learning work in local high needs schools, such as at Eagle Point Elementary in Albany and Abram Lansing Elementary School in Cohoes.

Within these placements, UAlbany master’s students teach school-aged learners who struggle with literacy, engage with family members to better understand in and out of school literacies, and reflect on these experiences to inform and reform teaching practices. In doing so, we attain three goals: educate and prepare future teachers for work in diverse and high-need schools, conduct research on pedagogical prac-tices and partner with local community members.

Programs like these and others throughout the SOE impact communities in the Capital District as we prepare future educators and mental health practitioners and conduct research that seeks to transform education policy and practice and mental health interventions.

For 175 years, the SOE has been committed to working with our partners in the K12 schools to prepare the next generation of teachers and leaders. In fact, our relationship is a symbiotic and important one: We teach the teachers who teach the students who come to us.

But, somewhere in this cycle there has been a critical point of failure. The percentage of teachers from diverse backgrounds has not kept pace with the changing demographics of New York or even nationally. A report from the Education Trust last year found large and persistent gaps between the diversity of students and the diversity of their teachers, with the most pronounced gap occurring in the LatinX population – 41 percent of students in NYC identify as LatinX, while only 15 percent of their teachers do so.

And, similar gaps exist in districts across NY State, for teachers, principals and superintendents.

Having role models — students seeing teachers from their neighborhood — can inspire students to pursue the same career path. But, what happens if they do not have a role model? How do we create more inclusive educational environments? How do we support pathways to encourage more students to pursue teaching as a profession? And, then how do we encourage those teachers to pursue higher levels of leadership?

The SOE seeks to become a national leader in recruiting and preparing diverse educator and mental health professionals to reflect the changing demographics of New York and the United States and preparing all of our future educators and mental health professionals to create more inclusive and equitable learning environments.