by Jamil Ragland CTNewsJunkie
HARTFORD, CT – Future teachers of color joined state legislators and education officials to celebrate a scholarship that will help diversify the teacher landscape in the state.
Sen. Doug McCrory, D-Hartford, held a news conference Monday at the Legislative Office Building to discuss the Aspiring Educators Diversity Scholarship Program, which is designed to encourage more people of color to pursue careers in education by providing financial support for their studies.
“This program represents an investment in a future where Connecticut students from all backgrounds can see themselves reflected in their teachers,” McCrory said. “Scholarships like this are a critical step in addressing systemic barriers in education and ensuring that the teaching profession is accessible and appealing to folks from all walks of life.”
The Aspiring Educators Diversity Scholarship is available for diverse students who graduated from a public high school in a priority school district. Students must be enrolled in an approved educator preparation program in Connecticut, and can earn up to $10,000 annually
for undergraduate or graduate programs. Students who receive the scholarship commit to working in a Connecticut school district for three years. The deadline for apply for a scholarship this year is March 15th, and students can apply here.
Last year, the state legislature funded the scholarship with $4 million. Money was awarded to 29 students from an applicant pool of over 300. To respond to the high demand for the program, McCrory said he would like to increase funding to $6 million this session.
Deputy Commissioner of Education Sinthia Sone-Moyano spoke about the impact the scholarship will have not only on future educators, but also on the students they teach.
“The Aspiring Educators Scholarship is a win for the field of education. It addresses the disparities that our students of color often face due to systemic barriers in access to education by increasing the number of our classrooms that are led by teachers of color,” she said.
During the news conference, three recipients of the scholarship spoke to describe how the program helped them to pursue their dreams of being teachers.
“My main reason for becoming a teacher is, as others have said, I haven’t seen a lot of people who look like me in the environment helping students and I think that goes a long way,” said Sherrod Cuttino, a student at Central Connecticut State University. “Even now, being so young, I talk to other students and they say I’m a role model to them. So I can only imagine the effect on a larger scale when I become a teacher.”
CCSU sophomore Nylarmar Samuels hopes to be a high school history teacher.
“I want to be a teacher because I want to bring different cultural aspects into the classroom,” Samuels said. “Whether it’s in the curriculum or not, I feel like it’s important for students to learn about the people around them. This scholarship has helped me alot as well. My family doesn’t get alot of financial aid, so I’m really thankful to be receiving it because it helps my mom out alot.”
Lizmarie Maldonado, a senior at Eastern Connecticut State University, is excited to be a role model for students like her as well. “One of the quotes that I live by is ‘Be the teacher you needed when you were younger.’ Growing up, I didn’t have a lot of support financially, and this scholarship has allowed me to pursue my master’s degree.”
Connecticut requires that certified teachers complete a master’s degree program, as well as testing appropriate to the grade level which they will be teaching. When the costs of tuition and testing are combined, students can find themselves in tens of thousands of dollars of debt before they ever get in front of a classroom and begin earning income.
Additionally, Connecticut has a major shortcoming when it comes to attracting and retaining teachers of color. According to a report by Education Reform Now, 52.5% of students in Connecticut classrooms are children of color, yet only 11.2% of educators are people of color.
“We also have to keep in mind that drawing these wonderful kids into our profession is only step one. We need to figure out how to keep and maintain these people in our workforce,” said Kate Dias, president of the Connecticut Education Association. “Not only is that important in terms of providing these scholarships so that our students are entering their field and getting into the classroom with less debt, but we also have to think about how we’re supporting and maintaining the profession.”