15 African-American Male Teachers Explain the Inspiring Reasons Why They Teach

Photos and comments from 15 Black male teachers are worth sharing. Where are the men in our classrooms?

NBC Chicago: CPS Outlines Plan to Pay for New Teacher Contract

Courtesy of Education Nation:

The plan released on Friday doesn't include classroom cuts. Instead, savings and revenue identified to fund the first year of the contract, according to the district, include:

• Operations: Reduce lunchroom costs and general fund subsidy ($11 million); Achieve additional procurement savings ($10 million) 
• Administration: Delay or cancel filling vacant, non-teaching positions ($8 million); Additional administrative reductions, targeting savings from printer consolidation, limiting equipment purchases, subscriptions and professional memberships ($4 million)
• Financial: Capitalize interest on FY12 bond sale ($13 million); Sell surplus properties ($15 million); Debt restructuring ($42 million).

The contract includes a new evaluation system and an agreement that some teachers can keep their jobs if schools close. It also includes an agreement on implementing a longer school day.

Salary increases amount to $103 million of the first year of the contract.

School started back today now to make up those last 7 school days

Scene outside of Harlan last Friday

School started back today after the strike that occurred the last seven school days from last Monday to this past Tuesday. Now to make up those missed days of school back!

CPS spokeswoman Becky Carroll said both sides have agreed to restore the days of class lost to the strike, but they have yet to agree on when.

No ideas of whether to add them to the end of the school year or to a vacation break have been discussed, she said.

“We haven’t agreed when, but the agreement is to restore them,” Carroll said.

I hope they resolve that soon!

What our schools need? A few good men...

I couldn't agree more! As I saw in another 60 Minutes story years ago, "where are the men?". Some statistics:

Despite some inroads by men, teaching remains a female-dominated profession. This is especially true for younger children. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 2% of pre-K and kindergarten teachers and 18% of elementary and middle-school teachers are men.

The situation is more balanced, but not evenly balanced, in secondary school, where 42% of teachers are men.

There are three points to be made here, but I think the third one is key:

Third, we especially need black male teachers in the classroom. As Education Secretary Arne Duncan has argued, "All of our students benefit from having a black male in the classroom. But particularly our young black males." Yet black males represent a mere 2% of the K-12 teaching workforce. If this were to change, we might begin to see better educational outcomes and life outcomes for young black males.

That point is very important. Young Black males are struggling and they get into the most trouble. If only they saw someone who looked like them in the classroom and helping to build them up!

Read the rest!

Via Instapundit.

ALSO, go back and read this post. One place among many to start recruiting Black male teachers.

CPS Now Wants Longer School Day in January - Chicago News Cooperative

CPS Now Wants Longer School Day in January - Chicago News Cooperative

Less than two days after negotiations between the Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Teachers Union stalled, a new offer is on the table presenting the possibility of a teacher raise and a longer school day as early as January.

Schools CEO Jean-Claude Brizard first offered to pay elementary school teachers 2 percent more to work an additional 90 minutes each day in September when he appeared on WTTW’s “Chicago Tonight” Tuesday night. During Wednesday’s Board of Education meeting, CPS officials said the changes could be made as soon as January, 2012.

The offer came as a surprise to CTU president Karen Lewis. “It would’ve been nice if we had that proposal while we were actually in negotiations,” Lewis said Wednesday after the board meeting. “For some reason they decided to do it on Channel 11.”

The two parties began negotiating over wages after the board voted to deny teachers their 4 percent contractual raises in June, citing a $712 million deficit.

Yeah making a proposal on TV show when it could've been made behind closed doors in labor negotiations is not exactly a good look. I'm just going to side with Karen Lewis on this one!

I do however like the fact that they're talking about a longer school day especially on the elementary school level. Let's hope that the school board and the teachers can come to terms with that.

ALSO you can watch CEO Brizard's appearance on Chicago Tonight below [VIDEO]

Morehouse College wants more Black male teachers in American classrooms

Click for Morehouse website

Morehouse College is one of the most prestigious of our nation's Historically Black Colleges/Universities, but it's safe to say it's one of the prestigious of our nations colleges. Morehouse is not only historically Black, but also the only college that educates Black males.

It's interesting to see an update from Morehouse College President Robert Franklin, where he is talking about the weather situation in Atlanta:

Before I conclude, I’d like you all to be aware of an exciting event which you will hear more about in the days ahead. The U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will conduct a town hall meeting on the Morehouse campus along with alumnus, trustee and award winning filmmaker Spike Lee. The town hall will promote President Obama’s Teach Campaign aimed at dramatically increasing the number of African American male teachers in the nation’s classrooms.

Currently, the U.S. hires over 180,000 teachers a year. Only 4,500 of them are African American men. Although the Black student population is 17%, only 7% of all teachers are African American. Morehouse is in a position to impact this national phenomenon for the good. Stay tuned.

BTW, I believe Dr. Franklin is himself a product of the Chicago Public Schools as I read somewhere that he was a graduate of Morgan Park High School. He did give a commencement speech to (Empehi) back in 2009. Oddly enough I graduated from Morehouse that same year and he shook my hand as I strolled the stage.

Also, the bottom of this blog contains the symbols for both Harlan Community Academy and Morehouse College.