A Maryland parent's rights group has criticized the efforts of Baltimore County Public Schools (BCPS), which was created to “increase teacher diversity,” WJAR reported Tuesday.
Last month, BCPS launched the “Growing Our Own” scholarship program, which aims to find, hire and retain “BIPOC.” [Black, indigenous, people of color]According to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) teachers: WJAR.
Parents' Defending Education (PDE) reportedly secured and shared BCPS news and exclusively on the show. classroom crisis (CITC). The notice states that the $1 million program has been launched to address the “significant teacher shortage” currently facing BCPS. (Related: Universities face allegations of civil rights violations in race-based scholarship programs)
Parent rights groups are condemning a new initiative aimed at “increasing teacher diversity” in Maryland school districts.https://t.co/Eg4hBTeRJx
— CBS 21 News (@CBS21NEWS) March 5, 2024
Scholarship winners will receive financial assistance for tuition fees, books, and expenses related to completing their education, the notification added.
“Every child has the right to grow up with role models and leaders who look like them,” said Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski at BCPS. press release. “Diversity is our strength in Baltimore County, and the new recruitment scholarships will support students from across the county and make our school system stronger and more vibrant.”
PDE researcher Alex Nester told CITC that these policies are “blatantly discriminatory” and emphasize “race and gender politics” at the expense of education, WJAR reported. Stated.
“Whenever we prioritize qualities other than the best and brightest teachers, we may end up overlooking the teachers who are truly a good fit for the district, but because those teachers are not a certain race or a certain person; They are being extradited,'' Nestor also told CITC. “And that's wrong.”
According to a BCPS press release, 40.4% of the district's students are black and 32.8% are white, with white teachers making up 55.2% of the district's total teachers and black teachers making up 34.9%.
