The student body of America’s public schools is more diverse than ever, with a solid majority of children of color. But the teacher corp doesn’t reflect that diversity. Fewer than a quarter of American teachers are non-white, and fewer than 10 percent of teachers are Black. On today’s episode of A Word, Jason Johnson is joined by former U.S. Secretary of Education John King about what’s driving Black teachers from the classroom, and the efforts to bring more young teachers in.

Guest: John King, former Secretary of Education and current president of The Education Trust

Podcast production by Yanii Evans

You can skip all the ads in A Word by joining Slate Plus. Sign up now at slate.com/awordplus for just $1 for your first month.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.