National Campaign Seeks to Elevate the Teaching Profession, Boost Diversity

The U.S. Department of Education recently launched its campaign to elevate the teaching profession and promote educator diversity. The campaign titled “Teachers: Leaders Shaping Lives” is headlined by a new public service announcement developed in partnership with TEACH.org and One Million Teachers of Color, according to a news release.

The goal of the PSA is to inspire more talented people — especially those from underrepresented communities — to become teachers, while also elevating the teaching profession and celebrating our teachers. The PSA premiered on LinkedIn’s LinkedIn Live and will appear in media markets across the country via television, radio and social media. To watch the PSA, click here.

The announcement builds on the USDOE’s commitment to accelerating academic recovery by working with state and local leaders to elevate the teaching profession and address educator shortages.

“Over the past two decades, the K-12 student population has become much more racially diverse, but that same trend in diversity is not reflected in teachers and school leaders,” said Dr. Javaid Siddiqi, president and CEO of the Hunt Institute. “The ‘One Million Teachers of Color’ campaign is pleased to partner with TEACH.org and the U.S. Department of Education to highlight the needs of our educator workforce in order to address the underrepresentation in our schools. This collective movement will support our goal of increasing the number of teachers of color by one million by 2030.”

Zachary Levine, executive director of TEACH.org, said, “We know that the existing teacher diversity gap has an adverse impact on students and that all students would benefit from having more teachers of color. TEACH.org envisions a day when every classroom has a quality teacher, and every student has access to educators who reflect the diversity of their community. This campaign highlights the expertise and innovation teachers bring to their work and will inspire diverse change makers who want to make an impact in an intellectually stimulating, fulfilling and fun profession.”

Learn more about the USDOE’s various efforts and initiatives to enhance the teaching profession and encourage a diverse pool of candidates to enter the field in the full news release.