With support from the Education Writers Association, Chandra Thomas Whitfield took a close look at the shortage of Black male teachers in 2019. Nationwide, Whitfield found that only 2 percent of teachers are Black men.

Although minorities make up more than half of the student population in public schools, people of color make up about 20 percent of teachers. More than 70 percent of the total number of teachers are female.

Eleven months after Whitfield’s report,  Alabama A&M University launched its Males for Alabama Education initiative to recruit Black male students who have an interest in teaching.

In October 2020, the Males for Alabama Education (M.AL.E.) Initiative announced that the scholarship program is accepting applications again.

Coordinated by the College of Education, Humanities and Behavioral Sciences and its Department of Teacher Education and Leadership, the M.AL.E. Initiative aims to:

• Recruit undergraduate and graduate male students who express an interest in teaching students within Alabama’s public P-12 schools
• Provide up to two years of tuition assistance for undergraduate juniors and seniors and up to two (2) years of tuition assistance for graduate students
• Provide funding and test preparation support to complete assessments needed to meet state certification requirements (Praxis I Core, Praxis II content, and EdTPA)
• Provide mentorship and build collegiality through a student cohort system beyond certification completion
• Provide pre-post job-embedded professional and personal development opportunities for M.AL.E students.

For each year of student participation in the M.AL.E. initiative, participants will be required to provide two (2) years of service within a public Alabama P-12 school.

For more information, contact e-mail larry.collier@aamu.edu or call (256) 372-5520.

Read more on Black males teaching for America here: Corey Carter’s 7 tips for the school year