The changing face of American Education.

• Author: Bradshaw, Wilson G.
• Position: Education

IT IS NO SECRET that the face of American education is changing. Today, one-third of all public school students come from communities of color, and each year the nation's classrooms become more diverse. Within 20 years, people of color will make up nearly 50% of the U.S. population and, in many communities, "minorities" will become the new majority.

This growing racial and ethnic diversity enriches the educational environment. It provides a glimpse of life experiences different from one's own and a broad cultural palette from which to learn. In the hands of a skilled educator, a diverse classroom fosters the cultural awareness and understanding that students need in today's global economy.

As the faces in our classrooms are changing, though, our educators are not. Education Week reports that, in the next three years, just three percent of public school teachers will be people of color. Only five percent of K-12 superintendents and 13% of college faculty members will be from communities of color, representing an increasing disparity between students and their educational role models.

The problem is magnified in urban areas. According to Census Bureau analysis conducted by William H. Frey in Diversity in America, whites are outnumbered by minority groups in more than 200 U.S. counties. Most of these include large metropolitan areas like Philadelphia, Fresno, Atlanta, St. Louis, and Houston. It is expected that the greatest number of minorities will continue to live in metropolitan areas for the foreseeable future, challenging the nation to design urban education programs that attract members of minority groups, as well as role models that invite the participation of people of color.

It is critical that teachers and those who shape America's education systems reflect the students and communities they serve. When students and educational role models share a racial and cultural heritage, students begin to see the possibilities that await them, not the barriers. Traditionally underrepresented students have a better chance of achieving academically when they see people like themselves succeeding personally and professionally. Such role models influence young people directly, in the classroom, and indirectly, as living proof that the proverbial "American Dream" is not out of reach for people of color.

However, minority students aren't the only ones who benefit from educators of color. Racial and ethnic variety in a school setting enhances learning for everyone. Diversity in the classroom prepares students for diversity in the real world and, ultimately, for the international marketplace that will employ them.

Consider the findings of higher education consultant Gene Budig. He states that, if a region wants to compete in the global economy, 80% of its students must pursue postsecondary education. Many, of these students will be people of colon particularly in metropolitan regions. Economic growth will occur only if we instill in minority students the belief they can succeed at the nation's...