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Gina Dukes knew she wanted to be a teacher the moment she heard a formerly homeless schoolmate talk about the impact teachers had in his life. A once-shy student who grew into a confident, charismatic poet, Dukes wanted to advocate for Black kids.
“I wanted to be that champion,” Dukes says. “I wanted to be that safe space, that person who opens up the world for other students.”
And she did, becoming a high school English teacher in 2017. Now, at Science Leadership Academy at Beeber in Philadelphia, she also works with high schoolers who aspire to be teachers through the nonprofit Center for Black Educator Development. But it and other organizations that recruit, train, and support Black educators face existential challenges under the Trump administration.
In February, the White House’s crusade against diversity, equity, and inclusion programs reached the Department of Education, which terminated more than $600 million in federal teacher-training grants that touch on race.
Legal Limbo
The DOE specifically identified three programs for termination: Teacher Quality Partnership Program, the Supporting Effective Educator Development program, and Teacher and School Leader Incentive. All three programs sought to encourage people of color to become teachers or improve education at high-needs schools, which tend to be majority Black.
In March, a judge ordered the Trump administration to restore those teacher preparation grants, but it’s likely the administration will appeal. Meanwhile, teacher prep programs in North Carolina, Virginia, California, and several other states have also been impacted.
As a teacher, I feel like this is the call we sign up for, to educate the young minds of the world and future leaders. We have to be prepared.Gina Dukes, Philadelphia Teacher
While some state and education officials wait for the final say in the courts, Orpheus Williams, CBED’s chief program office, says his program is “just monitoring it like everyone else, day to day. But we’re trying to prepare as best as possible to be able to withstand [the loss of federal grants], which may be inevitable.”
While CBED doesn’t receive extensive federal funding, he says, districts are a “little leery” of associating themselves with an organization that explicitly states Black educators are its focus.
To counter the threat of losing funding, the CBED has linked arms with the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Education Association, which have jointly filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of Education. The lawsuit is a response to the DOE’s Dear Colleague Letter, which threatened to cut funding from schools that support DEI initiatives.
The CBED has three pathways – Teaching Academy, Future Teachers of Excellence Fellowship, and Freedom Schools Literacy Academy – that expose students from eighth grade to college to different aspects of teaching.
Echoes of Brown v. Board
“It starts with having them explore their own values, having them explore their own sense of purpose,” Williams says. “It centers on self and the techniques, the technicalities, or technical nature of what it means to be a teacher.”
The Trump administration’s attacks on teacher funding, Williams says, remind him of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case and the battle that educators fought for equality. CBED must bring that same energy to the current fight, he says.
”Our commitment remains steadfast to rebuilding that national Black teacher pipeline,” Williams says. “The interest has not wavered, especially after the initial wave of executive orders, where folks were just really trying to figure out what’s happening.”
Meanwhile, Dukes says she’s privileged to teach at a predominantly Black school where she can develop a historically accurate curriculum and recommend books without having to look over her shoulder.
“While my school might not necessarily be a place where a lot of the conflict or issues are coming up, I’m trying to make my students aware of what’s happening around them in the world and to the world that they’re about to go into,” she says.
While she feels some pressure as a teacher, Dukes says this is a pivotal moment.
“Every generation has to meet their challenges and moments,” she says. “As a teacher, I feel like this is the call we sign up for, to educate the young minds of the world and future leaders. We have to be prepared.”
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