This partnership will work with NJDOE, building on prior REL work, to use research and data to increase the number of teachers of color hired in the state and eventually improve student outcomes. In particular, the REL will support NJDOE in working toward its goal to ensure that every preschool to twelfth grade student in the state is taught by at least one teacher of color between preschool and twelfth grade. The partnership will work with NJDOE to help districts in the state understand reports the REL helped them produce during the last REL cycle, showing teacher and student characteristics in each district in the state. The REL will also help the NJDOE identify evidence-based strategies to increase the number of teachers of color they hire, develop continuous improvement processes, and build evidence on effective approaches to increase hiring of teachers of color.
Partnership organization:
New Jersey Department of Education
Current Projects
REL Mid-Atlantic and the New Jersey Department of Education are conducting an applied research study to increase understanding of the types of changes 10 New Jersey school districts made to their hiring processes following a continuous improvement coaching series provided during the 2022/23 school year. The study will explore challenges districts encountered in incorporating hiring practices informed by the coaching, as well as how they addressed such challenges, and the extent to which districts engaged in continuous improvement efforts for practices aimed at increasing the hiring of teachers of color.
In this project, the REL will actively prepare the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) and district staff to lead coaching on increasing educator diversity within the districts they support. This project will build a Community of Practice (CoP) to further support and enhance the implementation of effective practices that aim to increase educator diversity. The CoP will provide a forum for NJDOE and district staff to engage with peers, reflect on challenges, and share resources and strategies.
Completed Projects
REL Mid-Atlantic partnered with the New Jersey Department of Education to develop and facilitate a six-session coaching series for 10 local school districts, building their capacity to make data-informed decisions and implement research-based practices that promote increased hiring of teachers of color throughout the state. The sessions helped district staff create a vision statement, analyze their teacher workforce data, conduct root cause analyses, identify and implement evidence-based strategies for addressing the root causes, and develop a theory of action and implement continuous improvement processes to promote change in hiring practices.
Blog post: Why Increasing Educator Diversity Matters in New Jersey
REL Mid-Atlantic partnered with the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) to develop and facilitate a six-session coaching series that built the capacity of state leaders to train districts in the 2024/25 school year on culturally responsive hiring practices, bolstering the efforts of NJDOE to build an educator workforce that more closely reflects the ethno-racial diversity of the state’s student population.