Local People

Last Updated on Thursday, 01 June 2023 12:05

By Lois Thomson

Tracy Calhoun

Tracy Calhoun is working on a program for the Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS), as well as the Duquesne, Penn Hills, South Fayette, Sto Rox, and Wilkinsburg School Districts, but she would like the Monessen School District to get on board as well.

Calhoun, a district mathematics academic coach for the PPS, is serving on an Equity Leadership Institute team – in conjunction with Teach Plus – that is working within the district to find a way to hire more diverse teachers. She said the first step was to review the data, "looking at how many African American students we actually have and comparing that with how many African American teachers we have. The reason for looking at this is because race and color do play a factor with our students of color."

Calhoun explained that to perform at their best, the students need to have a certain percentage of teachers who look like them and share the same cultural backgrounds – teachers who can better understand what the students are dealing with. "When we have teachers of color who are bonding with students, and have the same beliefs and values – they're making connections, and those students are more willing to show what they don't know and to be more vulnerable." Calhoun said people often don't understand where students are coming from, or why they won't open up, but it's because they may not feel safe to do so.

Studies indicate that one reason for the low numbers of diverse teachers is that a lot of them don't stay within the districts. "We believe that's because there's a lack of resources and support and structure to retain them. Our goal is to increase (the numbers) from 14 percent to 20 percent by next school year, and grow 2 percent to 3 percent each year after that. That's through recruitment, and by making sure everyone in the district knows about different programs we have to support our black and brown students."

Calhoun admitted that Monessen is not part of the program, but said, "I want that experience for our Monessen students. I really want to urge teachers, principals, superintendents to buy in to be a part of the program. I'm having conversations with educators and those who are participating in programs with Monessen because Monessen is my alma mater."

She concluded, "It's all about everyone coming together for the greater good, which is to be able to support our students, build a connection, help our students grow, and get rid of barriers."