Now, black Americans who wish to become teachers do it for the sake of the job, and the decision is no longer economical, she said.
Cheryl Hanley-Maxwell, the UW education school’s associate dean of teacher education, said several factors contribute to the lower number of minority students applying for college: poverty, fewer educational role models, less understanding of the impact of a college degree and less knowledge about how to get into college and how to pay for it.
“I suspect they also get less encouragement,” she said. “Cost of higher education can be a really big barrier, especially if no one is helping you navigate potential supports.”
The university recruits broadly, from high schools all over the country, Hanley-Maxwell said. One strategy in making the profession attractive to students is presenting it as a way to improve the lives of young people.