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There is limited discussion in the teacher education literature about the experiences of pre-service black male teachers generally and the ethnic diversity among black male pre-service teachers specifically. Thus, this paper aims to explore the experiences of Frank, a black male refugee health education major attending an historically black college and university (HBCU).

This research study is theoretically guided by selected tenets of Bush and Bush’s (2013) African American male theory and Goodman et al.’s (2006) transition framework and uses a qualitative approach to explore Frank’s transition experiences when coming to America, attending college and engaging in his student teaching experience.

Frank experienced some difficulty transitioning to America, as a result of not having a strong financial foundation. During his college transition, Frank believed that the HBCU environment was nurturing; however, he encountered numerous ethnocentrically charged hostile confrontations from US-born black students at his university because of his accent. While he had some disagreements with the US education system in terms of discipline, Frank believed that his accent served as an asset during student teaching.

This study adds to the burgeoning research that explores the intersectional identities among pre-service black male teachers. As we argue in this paper, researchers, policymakers and practitioners cannot treat black male teachers as a monolithic group and must contemplate the unique supports needed that can attend to the racial and ethnic needs of black male teachers.

Research studies indicate African American males face multiple and reinforcing obstacles by choosing to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) related majors and professions. Though participation in STEM fields has increased, African American males remain underrepresented in STEM academic programs and occupations as a whole, and in the computing sciences specifically. In the STEM field of computing sciences, isolation, inadequate advisement, among other complex factors, perpetuate the underrepresentation and low persistence of African American males in academic programs. Utilizing viable social identity and communities of practice as theoretical underpinnings, this qualitative study into the lives of aspiring and current African American male computer scientists produced findings that illuminate the significance of what I call STEMfluences, or social interactions that promote socialization, STEM identity, confidence, and success in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics related disciplines like the computing sciences, and promote persistence through degree attainment in homogeneous, unwelcoming STEM academic environments. These STEMfluences are social constructs that include positive peer interactions and modeling, parental and familial nurturing, and multifaceted mentorship.

This chapter focuses on two aspects of the achievement gap – underachievement and low achievement among Black males in urban school contexts. More specifically, the authors explain several problems/issues confronting Black male students in P-12 gifted and talented, advanced placement, and special education programs, along with the school-to-prison pipeline – inequitable discipline in the form of suspensions and expulsions. We parse underrepresentation and overrepresentation for this student group. A central part of this discussion is grounded in the achievement gap literature on Black students in general with implications for Black males in particular. Another fundamental aspect of this discussion is the need for educators to adopt an anti-racist (social justice or civil rights) and cultural competence approach to their work, which means being equity-based and culturally responsive in philosophy and action. Suggestions for closing the achievement gap and otherwise improving the achievement of Black males are provided for educators. We also compel educators to go beyond talking about equity by setting quantifiable equity goals for minimum and maximum percentages (and numbers).

In segregated elementary and high schools, African American male teachers played the role of mentor in the lives of African American male students which included serving as role model, authority figure, counselor, emotional and academic supporter, encourager, and community activist. The seven men interviewed for this study believed that African American male teachers can serve these same roles in today’s schools as they assist African American males and other students of color in navigating through the sometime difficult maze of what it takes to successfully complete high school and postsecondary degrees. Factors are also noted that may encourage or discourage African American males’ entry into the teaching profession.

School counselors are committed to serving students' social-emotional, postsecondary, and academic needs while they navigate primary and secondary school (American School Counselor Association, 2019). Much has been said about the ways in which school counselors can impact postsecondary outcomes and social emotional health. It is important that we also address the ways school counselors can impact positive academic outcomes as it is intertwined in postsecondary options and success. For Black males, academic success has traditionally been met with systemic barriers (i.e., school-to-prison pipeline, lower graduation rates, lower incomes, higher unemployment rates, and lower college going rates (National Center for Edcuation Statisitics, 2019a, 2019b, 2020a, 2020b) and low expectations. School counselors are charged to be leaders and change agents for social justice and equity in our schools by the American School Counselor Association (ASCA, 2019) and can impact systemic change. This chapter will explore ways in which school counselors can impact positive academic outcomes for Black males. School counselors as change agents and advocates are positioned to make a real impact for Black male academic success. The authors will also provide some recommendations and best practices for elementary, middle, and high school counselors as they work with students, teachers, and families from an anti-deficit model as outlined by Harper (2012).

Our analyses and conclusions are based on both research literature on college access for African American males and the survey responses of 214,951 full-time, first-time African American male freshmen between 1971 and 2004. First, we reviewed literature on the experiences of African American male high-school students and the common barriers facing their matriculation to college. We organized findings from the research into broad themes emerging from the literature, guided by Swail, Cabrera, Lee, and Williams's Integrated Model for Student Success (2005). Based on this framework, college access and academic achievement are not based on a single factor or one dimension; rather, they are constructed through a complex interaction of multiple dimensions. Swail and colleagues delineate these factors into three categories: cognitive, social, and institutional/systemic. Cognitive factors take place largely inside the student and relate to the skills, abilities, and knowledge students have which prepare them for higher education, including academic preparation, post-secondary planning, and college knowledge (Swail, Redd, & Perna, 2003; Swail et al., 2005). Social factors exist largely outside the student, and capture the ways in which those who have relationships with students can influence their access to post-secondary education. The social dimension includes a student's cultural history, family influence, financial issues and socioeconomic status, and ability to interact with peers (Swail, 2003; Swail et al., 2005). Finally the institutional/systemic dimension captures the ability of institutions to influence and shape student efforts to reach their college goals. High-school resources and support, outreach programs, and opportunities for financial aid could all be considered within this dimension of the framework (Swail, 2003; Swail et al., 2005).

Chike Akua is a doctoral student in educational policy studies at Georgia State University. A former middle school teacher, Akua taught in public schools for 15 years. During his tenure as a teacher, he was selected as a Teacher of the Year in the State of Virginia and acknowledged for exemplary teaching and service in Georgia. Akua is the author of widely disseminated instructional materials and children's literature and has led principal and teacher workshops for more than 500 U.S. schools and school districts. His book A Treasure Within: Stories of Remembrance and Rediscovery was nominated for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Award for Outstanding Contribution to Children's Literature.

Rural students encounter challenges such as the achievement gap; racial inequality; little or no college counseling; higher rates of poverty; limited accessibility to college preparatory courses; and recruitment and retention of quality teachers. Moreover, Black males tend to experience the same issues; however, there is a dearth of literature around this population in rural areas. The authors describe the implications of the unique intersection of Black males in rural settings and discuss the unique challenges and opportunities presented. Specifically, academic achievement, college and career readiness, and access to employment and higher education for Black males are highlighted in this chapter. The authors provide recommendations on research and practice for educators to best serve Black males in rural settings.

The concept of diversity in education is often a starting point for dialogue regarding the persistent achievement gap in American classrooms. However, simply advocating for diversity without recommending or adopting strategies to achieve diversity does not necessarily create the forum for fruitful dialogue. Various educational institutions and organizations pay lip service to the concept of diversity without actually engaging in practices to increase diversity. The state of education in our nation’s most impoverished and marginalized communities can be affectively addressed through various strategies, including increasing diversity among our teaching force. Nevertheless, even organizations like Teach for America, who recognize the importance of bringing diversity to the classroom, struggle to recruit, train, and retain African-American and Latino male teachers. This is truly a troubling circumstance because educating our African-American and Latino male students have proven to be a task that we as a nation are wholly inept and dreadfully incapable of accomplishing. If we are to provide better educational services for our most at-risk populations of students, we as a society must no longer simply pay lip service to diversity. We must devise complex strategies to bring diversity into our nation's classrooms in order to diversity our teacher workforce, and more effectively recruit, train, and retain African-American and Latino male teachers.

Teachers are more than just instructors. Teachers are counselors and mentors; teachers guide students and prepare them for the world. Part of that preparation includes being transparent about the challenges that await them in addition encouraging students that they are capable in overcoming them all. Preparing students in that way requires teachers understand both the socioeconomic and sociohistorical psychology of their students, which impact their experiences and circumstances. For African American male students, an African American male teacher provides a natural harmony of understanding these very experiences and circumstances. This is not to say that only an African American male can teach African American male students, rather the unique experiences central to the Black male experience in America require educators who desire to speak of those experiences in the classroom in an attempt to both equip students with the necessary academic and interpersonal skills for their success in life. In the case of the African American male teacher, he not only can speak to the Black male experience in America, he lives it daily. This testimonial is from an African American male teacher who believes that as an African American male who teaches, he has the unique opportunity to mentor and disciple his Black male students through honesty and transparency rather than through “protecting” them from the realities that await them.