In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, the U.S. Department of Education is hosting a symposium on "Male Educators of Color," on Friday, May 8, at the Department's headquarters in Washington, D.C. The symposium will bring together more than 140 men of color from across the country who are committed to educating our nation's youth. The event will highlight educators' success stories, address issues of teacher recruitment and retention, as well as provide an opportunity for male teachers of color to come together to learn from and empower each other. A question-and-answer session will follow each panel discussion.
Speaking at the event will be U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan; John King, senior advisor delegated duties of deputy secretary of education; and Ted Mitchell, under secretary of education. Senior officials from the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans, the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities, the White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education, and the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics also will participate.
Each day, the U.S. Department of Education recognizes the great work of teachers throughout the country, who give of themselves to improve educational opportunities for all students. This week in particular, the Department hosted many activities to show its appreciation for teachers. Those activities included Secretary Duncan making "courage calls" to retired teachers across the country thanking them for their service, as well as a Teacher Phone-a-Thon where Education Department employees made calls to teachers to thank them for their dedicated work and for making a difference in the lives of the nation's children.
The Department joined the #ThankATeacher social campaign, posting videos, pictures and graphics about the great work of teachers across the country. For example, the Department posted a video featuring Shanna Peeples, the 2015 National Teacher of the Year in which she talked about the importance of teachers. To learn more about the campaign, visit the #ThankATeacher During Teacher Appreciation Week! blog post on Homeroom. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube for more.
The Teach to Lead initiative of the Department and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards advance student outcomes by expanding opportunities for teacher leadership, particularly those that allow teachers to stay in the classroom.