A CLOSE LOOK AT MULTI-CULTURAL TEACHER RECRUITMENT PROJECT
AT GMU, FAIRFAX, VA.

Rebecca K. Fox, Ph.D.
Graduate School of Education
George Mason University

Introduction
Reversing the trend of declining numbers of teachers of color entering the field of education is a national concern
that must not be ignored by uninformed citizens who think the trend will simply correct itself without the concerted
attention and the collaborative efforts of our society.

Over the past ten to fifteen years, there has been a simultaneous decline in the number of teachers of color in our nation's schools and an increase in the number of students among these same groups. A shift in the demographics of our nation, coupled with special attention toward our nation's educational goals as we approach the year 2000, have created a fertile opportunity for creating change in our teaching force in order to meet the needs of our classrooms of the twenty-first century.

As we continue to recognize the tremendous value that diversity brings to us, our schools must work diligently to expand the scope of hiring practices beyond the issues surrounding number balancing and bring out the positive value gained from a diversity that reflects the population of this democratic nation. Reversing the trend of declining numbers of teachers of color is a national concern that must not be ignored by uninformed citizens who think the trend will simply correct itself without the concerted attention and the collaborative efforts of our society.

The Project
For the past five years, as part of our university's Project Diversity initiative, In March of 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000, a special conference has taken place at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, entitled A Celebration of Teaching: A Conference for High School Students Aspiring to Become Teachers. Supported by a National Education Association grant with additional funding from Phi Delta Kappa and the Sallie Mae Foundation, Celebration is part of the Graduate School of Education's Project Diversity, whose goal it is to form partnerships for improving the education of students in the public schools of Northern Virginia by establishing a system of early identification, recruitment, financial and academic support with the overall goal of increasing the percentage of teachers of color in today's classroom. It is hoped that many of these prospective teachers will ultimately enroll in the Graduate School of Education at GMU. The primary purpose of Project Diversity and the conference, now in its sixth year, is to work in collaboration with surrounding school systems to increase the interest of high school students in the field of education and to increase the number of students of color in the teaching profession, and particularly in the teacher education program at George Mason University. Begun as a pilot in 1996, the conference invited students from five area high schools with highly diverse populations. The conference was such a success in its pilot stage that its repeated effort was expanded to include seventeen high minority population high schools in four school districts and to double its number of attendees and presenters. In 1998, over 200 students attended, and on March 16, 2000, participation rose to 340 students and 51 adult sponsors and presenters from nineteen high schools.

Despite efforts at George Mason University for several years to increase the number of students of color in its teacher education program, the diversity of the teacher education program population still did not adequately reflect the proportional diverse population of students attending the public schools in the surrounding area. In an effort to remedy this situation and to meet the challenge of a recent NEA policy stating that American students must learn the academic, personal, and social skills they need to function adequately in the multi?cultural workplace of the future, George Mason University has taken several steps to help meet the increased needs and expectations of the 20 century. First, it has begun to form partnerships for improving the education of students in the public schools of Northern Virginia by establishing a system of early identification (the Early Identification Program), recruitment, financial and academic support with the aim that these students will continue their education beyond the secondary level. The Early Identification Program is part of the GMU Project Diversity whose goal it is to bring the percentage of minority teachers trained at GMU into alignment with the enrollment of student diversity at the University and in the public schools of the area. Second, it is communicating with minority students, parents, and counselors about the benefits of the field of education as a career choice. Third, it has begun work with surrounding school systems and their school administrators to establish Future Educators of America chapters or Teacher Cadet courses for prospective educators. A Celebration of Teaching embodies all of these goals and is helping our university to reach out to the schools to meet the challenge of equity and education for all students and to maintain contact with these schools throughout the year.

How Was it Done?
This day-long conference includes students, teachers, administrators, and educational personnel from four school districts and George Mason University. Different ethnic, racial, and cultural groups are represented in the planning committee, the attendees, and the presenters. It is the aim of A Celebration to be inclusive of all and to model equity and excellence in all facets of the project. The conference program (see attached 2000 program) reflects the same richness of cultural diversity in its presenters. For example, the keynote speaker was an African American gentleman who is a former high school chemistry teacher and head basketball coach. The story he shared with the students was not only compelling, but was a witness to how mentoring teachers and positive role models, financial assistance and determination can help an individual reach his dream. Presenters in the small group sessions shared information on "Student and Teacher Diversity in our Schools," "Financial Aid and Other Support," and "Teachers as Leaders." Information was provided to students about what other career path options exist in the field of education other than being a classroom teacher, such as academic counseling, school administration, and curriculum development. Because skills learned in education are transferable to other professions, one small group session talked about possible options for career positions open to graduates of teacher education programs. Three schools who already have active teacher education clubs presented their programs and made plans to network ideas with the schools forming new clubs. Students had been permitted to choose, in advance, two sessions they were interested in attending, one in the morning and one after lunch.

All students and teachers received packets which included information for them to take home with them about financial assistance at George Mason University and in Virginia, teacher salaries in the area's school districts, teacher licensure in Virginia, as well as souvenirs and the program of the day's activities. The overall atmosphere was genuinely enthusiastic on the part of students and teachers alike.

Evaluation of the Celebration
Everyone attending the conference was asked to complete an evaluation form. The evaluation forms for the Celebration 2000 were completed by both the adult and student attendees. Rated on a Likert Scale of 1 -5 (with 1 being the lowest, or poor, and 5 being the highest, or excellent), the teachers, club sponsors, and presenters rated the conference an overall 4.83 out of a possible 5, with a 47 percent response rate. The students attending rated the conference a 4.64, on the same scale of 1 to 5, with a 68% response rate.

Since we wanted to see how the conference might have affected the attitudes of those attending, we asked for attendees to share information about what they learned, what they liked best about the conference, and how the conference might have changed their minds about teaching. We also wanted them to take information back to their schools about what they had learned about teaching from the conference, so we asked them to share some of the ideas they had gleaned from the day's experiences that they might take back to their schools to share with fellow students. We used the information from our evaluation survey form in two ways: 1) to include the students' ideas and perspectives in the planning process for next year's Celebration, 2) to provide a forum for dialogue between the students and our university in order to provide support and answer questions/address concerns the students might have about teaching, in general. Responses and information were provided to the students after the conference via return mail to their schools. In one case, a student asked if someone from the university could come to speak at the monthly meeting of their Future Educators Club. We were able to comply with that request, visited the school, and have maintained contact with club members through its officers and sponsor. In addition, a newly created teacher cadet course is now being offered for academic credit at this high school. Club sponsors from another school requested that they bring students to spend a day on campus. In general, the evaluation responses provided excellent feedback about the conference and created an opportunity for ongoing contact with several of the participating students and schools.

Where Do We Go Now?
Plans are already underway for the Celebration in 2001, but we have decided to provide a shorter day with fewer presenters and a similar number of attendees from the same participating schools. Although the recent 2000 conference was an overwhelming success, we no longer have with us our same Project Diversity Co-Coordinator. We want to continue the momentum, but do not have the personnel to support the endeavor with the same attention to detail and coordination. The Planning Committee is already looking at ways to accomplish a similar day with less preparation. We cannot afford to become complacent because the established relationship needs to be nurtured and sustained for the sake of all parties. So, the question of the current planning committee is to establish a newer format for the day that will afford the same networking opportunities and inspiration for the students while requiring less intense effort on the part of the Planning Committee, the school personnel and the university.

One of the great successes from the 2000 Celebration was a film created by one of the media centers in a nearby school division. The film is being used by this school district in its recruitment efforts. The Celebration Coordinator has also each year appeared on a local cable television show to speak about the conference and the need for students to enter the field of education. There is still much to do that will reach out to all students in meaningful ways, and we feel that the Celebration conference will provide the springboard for ongoing dialogue. We must encourage current students of all races and ethnicities to enter the profession of teaching so that they can help our nation "make a difference" in the education of our future citizens.

By: A. Lin Goodwin AACTE National Symposium on Minority Teacher Supply & Demand, January, 1990

Fox & Pulliam, 1998

Supporting Bibliography

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