Black men comprise just 2 percent of U.S. teachers, but one activist is inspiring the next generation: ‘They can’t be what they can’t see’
The importance of diverse representation in Hollywood is a conversation that's been gaining steam. But what about representation in the classroom?
For Mario Jovan Shaw, co-founder of Profound Gentlemen, an organization geared towards empowering male educators of color, this question is integral to his work — especially when the reality is that just 2 percent of teachers in the United States are Black men.
“They can't be what they can't see," Shaw tells Yahoo Life, "so if there are Black boys just growing up and not being able to see Black male teachers, then you don't even think that you can become one."
Growing up in Cleveland, Ohio, Shaw had a handful of Black male teachers. But many of them, he says, never connected to him, or lacked the ability to show up as their authentic selves.
Shaw, now 32, originally pursued a degree in education from the University of Cincinnati, but became discouraged early on by the lack of representation in the college. He ended up switching his major to Africana studies, but after receiving encouragement from a Black male professor, Shaw enrolled in Teach for America, the nonprofit that recruits and trains teachers who will commit to a two-year stint in a low-income district. That experience brought him back to education and helped him to recognize the spaces where his leadership was needed. In 2012, Shaw started teaching seventh grade in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina.
"When I was a second-year teacher with Teach for America and Jonathan Ferrell got shot and killed by a police officer here in Charlotte, that devastated my students because they knew about the other police shootings,” Shaw tells Yahoo Life. “I started an after-school program for about seven to 12 boys of color, and we would talk about what it means to be a boy of color growing up in today's society.”
He continues, “Once I found out the reality, that there were only 2 percent of Black male teachers nationally, I started to work with the students and we started doing speaking engagements and started to talk about why male teachers of color are important."
In 2015, Shaw and fellow teacher Jason Terrell co-founded Profound Gentlemen, a community of about 150 male educators of color across the country. He says their mission is to foster leadership skills through social and emotional learning, mindfulness meditation and supporting men through their journeys as educators. Overall, the organization offers programs that focus on character development, content development and community impact, and cohorts meet in person in Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Washington D.C. and Memphis.
Shaw knows that providing this support is crucial to the success of Black male teachers.
“We know that males of color are five times more likely to leave education, due mainly to the support that they're not getting within the school building,” says Shaw. “We utilize those tools to help retain the educators of color by helping them to tap into their hearts, so they will be able to know themselves and lead from a place of authenticity.”
Showing up authentically at work is important for Shaw, who identifies as queer. In an era where states like Florida are attempting to prohibit conversations around sexual orientation and gender identity in the classroom, Shaw says it’s been important for him to address the obstacles that intersectionality can bring in the educational system.
"It’s just about to hit two years that you can't get fired for being a queer person in the workspace,” says Shaw. “And so for me, I had to get comfortable in my own skin around all of this. When I go to these meetings, even in the Black male education space, I could not look for somebody to tell me it’s ok to be comfortable. I could be comfortable on my Black side, but what about my queer side?”
“Oftentimes I'm the only Black leader of color in the space, and so many of my peers who are Black leaders told me don't be out, don't be out, but I'm here,” says Shaw.
Not only is Shaw present and engaged in the classroom, but he also looks for unique ways to inspire the next generation of leaders. One tool he uses is storytelling to drive his work. By having future educators share their personal stories, he has seen them get inspired to become teachers in their own communities and pass on the things they’ve learned.
“We have a storytelling series and they have an hour to write their stories. Then they share their stories and you see them crying,” says Hall. "I wanna get more students to be able to tell their story, whether that's through math or English or science.”
Hall calls the efforts of Profound Gentlemen “heart work,” because by supporting teachers, he believes that children will thrive as a result. He also knows that that Black students have a higher rate of success when they are in the classroom with Black teachers.
“If we can't have authentic teachers of color in schools showing up as themselves, then we're not gonna have students, specifically students of color, feeling safe to be their most authentic selves," says Shaw.
