LINCOLN- Recruiting and retaining more teachers of color across Nebraska holds myriad benefits for students — including closing racial achievements gaps — a number of school officials told the Legislature's Education Committee at a recent hearing.

But obstacles — including certification and teacher pay — are driving disparities, said people invited to speak at a hearing on an interim study resolution from Lincoln Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks to examine the issue.

The study outlined in Legislative Resolution 157 explores how Nebraska schools can do more to recruit and retain teachers and administrators that better represent the number of students of color.

Having a diverse workforce has been shown to close achievement gaps among students of color, Pansing Brooks said, but Nebraska's teachers and school leaders are not as diverse as the children attending school.

"We need to rectify that imbalance," she said.

A number of solutions put forward at the Sept. 16 hearing included offering scholarships and incentives to people of color, increasing teacher pay, eliminating burdensome certification hurdles — such as required Praxis exams — and recruiting out of state.

"The requirement of taking the Praxis again or paying a $500 fee does not say we want you in Nebraska," said Marian Holstein of the Nebraska Indian Education Association, who added that the number of Native teachers in the state does not match the need.

For the full article click HERE