TOGETHER, WE ARE REBUILDING THE NATIONAL BLACK TEACHING PIPELINE TO ACHIEVE EDUCATIONAL EQUITY AND RACIAL JUSTICE

Research shows when Black students have Black teachers who reflect their experiences and worldviews, they perform better in school. But most go through 13 years of public education without one.

As a result, Black students continue to fall short of their academic potential.

We built the Center to address this national educational crisis by increasing the number of Black teachers in public  district and charter schools and promoting anti-discriminatory, culturally-responsive educational practices. 

All so Black students can reap the full benefits of a quality public education.

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SCHOOL AND DISTRICT LEADERS:

WE WANT TO INVEST IN YOUR STUDENTS.

Partner with us to set up a Teaching Academy so your high school students can explore a career in education. Our Le Count-Catto Curriculum based in Black pedagogy helps students make the connection between teaching and activism.

All Teaching Academy students are eligible for the Center’s Black Teacher Pipeline Fellowship that provides academic support, professional coaching, college scholarships and retention bonuses. 

Don’t let your scholars miss out. Do your part to liberate education for generations to come. 

CONTACT US

NEWS & EVENTS

#BMEC2023: LIFTING AS WE CLIMB

#BMEC2023: LIFTING AS WE CLIMB

Date: November 16, 2023
Time:

.Join us for the largest, most influential gathering for Black educator activists and our allies.

Philadelphia School District, Center for Black Educator Development aim to increase number of Black male teachers

Philadelphia School District, Center for Black Educator Development aim to increase number of Black male teachers

A new, innovative program aimed at helping to produce the next generation of educators is being offered at the historic 90-year-old Dimner Beeber School building in West Philadelphia.

The Center’s CEO Testifies on Capitol Hill for Educator Diversity

The Center’s CEO Testifies on Capitol Hill for Educator Diversity

On September 25, 2024, Sharif El-Mekki, co-founder and CEO of the Center for Black Educator Development, testified before the U.S. House Committee on Education and…

Back to School:  Honoring the Essential Work of Black Educators

Back to School: Honoring the Essential Work of Black Educators

As we approach the new school year, let’s take a moment to honor the essential work of Black educators, historically and contemporarily, who play a…

#BMEC2024: SAVE THE DATE

#BMEC2024: SAVE THE DATE

Date: November 21, 2024
Time:

.Join us for the largest, most influential gathering for Black educator activists and our allies.

2024 Freedom Schools Literacy Academy: The Homecoming I Didn’t Know I Needed

2024 Freedom Schools Literacy Academy: The Homecoming I Didn’t Know I Needed

I am so glad I signed on to become a Servant Leader Apprentice (SLA) Coach for Freedom School Literacy Academy (FSLA).

FSLA: A Commitment to Fostering Black Joy, Empowerment, and Excellence

FSLA: A Commitment to Fostering Black Joy, Empowerment, and Excellence

The Center for Black Educator Development’s Freedom School Literacy Academy (FSLA) summer program. The experience was rewarding far beyond the extra income.

2024 Black Teacher Pipeline Grant Winners

2024 Black Teacher Pipeline Grant Winners

This year, we’re awarding eight organizations that are making a difference in helping rebuild the national #BlackTeacherPipeline with various award amounts totaling $500,000.

Black Teacher Appreciation Day 2024

Black Teacher Appreciation Day 2024

Join us this Black Teacher Appreciation Day on Thursday, May 9, 2024! We want to celebrate our wonderful teachers and raise awareness around the shortage…

Dr. Tequilla Brownie Women’s Black History Month Spotlight Feature

Dr. Tequilla Brownie Women’s Black History Month Spotlight Feature

Dr. Tequilla Brownie is the CEO of TNTP. She oversees TNTP’s executive team and all aspects of the organization’s operations, strategy, and growth. Her work…

Dr. Shameka Gerald Women’s History Month Spotlight Feature

Dr. Shameka Gerald Women’s History Month Spotlight Feature

Dr. Shameka N. Gerald began her career in 2005 as a 9th-grade mathematics teacher at Booker T. Washington High School, where she earned the 2008…

Makiah Burroughs Women’s History Month Spotlight Feature

Makiah Burroughs Women’s History Month Spotlight Feature

Makiah Burroughs attends the University of Virginia. She is a future Black teacher involved with the Center for Black Educator’s Freedom Schools Literacy Academy and…

Our Reach & Impact

2019-2023 PROGRESS REPORT
27 States
10,590 Participants

SIGNIFICANT OUTCOMES


TEACHER APPRENTICES

  • Interest in Teaching Black Children
  • Social Justice Orientation
  • Educator Activism

YOUNG SCHOLARS

  • Reading Skills
  • Positive Racial Identity

PROFESSIONAL EDUCATORS

  • Professional Development
  • E-Learning
  • Affinity Groups, including BMEC

Learn More


Ramier Jones
Junior Servant Leader 2020
Ramier Jones
Junior Servant Leader 2020

In Freedom Schools, culture and tradition are very important. If you don’t know your culture, you lose a part of yourself.

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Jacob Gray
Junior Servant Leader 2021
Jacob Gray
Junior Servant Leader 2021

What’s special about this camp is honestly the uplifting and emphasis on Black culture: how they want to embed into these children that you are Black, you are beautiful. You are Black and intelligent.

Jaiona Johnson
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021
Jaiona Johnson
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021

This Academy makes me realize that I am going to have a huge impact on these students’ lives.

The experience provides these students with tools and skills that they are going to end up using in the real world. It’s also going to help improve the skills that the students already know.

Melissa Leslie
Junior Servant Leader 2020
Melissa Leslie
Junior Servant Leader 2020

You learn here what you can do to change the outside world.

Jaleya Martin
Junior Servant Leader 2021
Jaleya Martin
Junior Servant Leader 2021

Freedom Schools Literacy Academy is really fun and interactive!

Noel Baynes
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021
Noel Baynes
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021

I learned the importance of leading by example and teaching with justice.

A lot of times the system causes our sisters and brothers to be forlorn and out of pocket, but that’s not their fault.  If you give them the tools, they will rise to the challenge. They want to succeed.

Oriana Smith
Junior Servant Leader 2022
Oriana Smith
Junior Servant Leader 2022

I would recommend this experience 100 percent to my friends because it was not only fun, but it exposed me to new ideas.

I would encourage them to join the education profession for the sake of their own education.

I want them to know that it is crucial for them to stand up and speak out about the unfairness of the system but most importantly, be the change.

Aisha Nashadeem
Servant Leader Apprentice 2020
Aisha Nashadeem
Servant Leader Apprentice 2020

My experience with Freedom Schools Literacy Academy afforded me so much confirmation that I was on the right path.

The start of my teaching career began during the pandemic. Yet in a time of great uncertainty, the work I got to do with the Freedom Schools Literacy Academy as a Servant Leader Apprentice confirmed that I was right where I needed to be.

Aremoni Chamber
Servant Leader Apprentice 2022
Aremoni Chamber
Servant Leader Apprentice 2022

Freedom School Literacy Academy really taps into what being Black is and embracing your blackness.

Making sure we get more Black teachers into the education system is what stuck with me the most and what made me want to come to this program.

Briana Amaya
Servant Leader Apprentice 2018
Briana Amaya
Servant Leader Apprentice 2018

I liked the cultural focus. It’s important to know the history of the school-to-prison pipeline system, how literacy rates inform the likelihood of prison involvement and things like redlining. There are rules and policies that create these systems. 

Freedom Schools allowed me to see all the parts. It’s not just about school. It opened me up to all the different aspects.

Charisma Holly
Servant Leader Apprentice 2022
Charisma Holly
Servant Leader Apprentice 2022

Freedom Schools Literacy Academy helped solidify my passion for teaching and has expanded my capacity for intellectual work.

My goal is to make the world a better place, secure the future for younger generations and to help mold the minds of future brilliant thinkers who can continue to improve the world.

Christian Sabree
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021
Christian Sabree
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021

I see Freedom Schools Literacy Academy as an opportunity that is a door that leads to a corridor of more doors.

Destini Williams
Junior Servant leader 2022
Destini Williams
Junior Servant leader 2022

What interested me in taking the role as a Junior Servant Leader was having the ability to motivate children to learn and also to get a better understanding of the history of education attracted me.

It is my ambition to become a teacher when I grow up.

Feven Shonga
Servant Leader Apprentice 2022
Feven Shonga
Servant Leader Apprentice 2022

Working with the Center for Black Educator Development pushed me to expand my views on literacy and inspired me to take a course on literacy when I returned to school. 

Overall, being an SLA has increased my passion about the education of Black children and pushes me to do well in my own life in order to contribute to the well-being of my community.

Horace Ryans
Servant Leader Apprentice 2020
Horace Ryans
Servant Leader Apprentice 2020

Freedom Schools is a direct way to be an activist for your community.

Teaching these kids what is right, how to love each other and advocate for themselves.

Trent Petty
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021
Trent Petty
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021

I want to see more Black teachers!

My ultimate vision is to have more Black educators in cities that may not be predominantly Black.

I think it is important for Black youth to pursue a career in the education industry because I see it as an investment for the future of our people.

Tre Terry
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021
Tre Terry
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021

I understand that it is crucial that Black boys and girls know that someone sees them, loves them, and believes in their innate genius.

I would like to see Black teachers reclaim their wholeness, continue to create sustainable institutions that unearth the work of the ancestors, demand critical thought, and listen to the communities in which they serve.

Tatiana Amaya
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021
Tatiana Amaya
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021

Freedom Schools Literacy Academy was liberating. I could be authentic all the time. I never needed to dim my personality or code switch and was able to be who I am and to connect to my students in the way I felt was needed and necessary.

Tarik Timothy
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021
Tarik Timothy
Servant Leader Apprentice 2021

I want to be what I had growing up as an educator, so I want to instill that sense of pride and expansive knowledge.

WHO WE SERVE

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

BECOME THE TEACHER YOU WISH YOU HAD.

Join our community of influential and accomplished Black educators. The Center offers opportunities to explore teaching careers through mentorship, workshops and instructional experiences.

Get involved in our Freedom Schools Literacy Academy and Teaching Academy to experience educator activism—something you’ll be able to carry with you for a lifetime.
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COLLEGE-AGED INDIVIDUALS

FIND YOURSELF IN EDUCATION.

In college, but still considering your career path?  Or are you already committed to teaching, but looking for extra training and real-world experience?

Become a Servant Leader Intern with our Freedom Schools Literacy Academy to train with world-class Black educators and get first-hand experience teaching young scholars reading skills.
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TEACHERS & PROFESSIONAL EDUCATORS

MENTOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF EDUCATOR ACTIVISTS.

Help us pass on a love for learning, teaching and sharing knowledge to the next generation of great Black educators, all within an intellectually rigorous, collaborative environment. 

Along the way, improve your own teaching and mentoring skills and reignite your passion for educator activism.
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PARENTS & FAMILIES

YOUR CHILDREN BELONG HERE.

As a parent, you are your children’s biggest champions. Through Freedom Schools Literacy Academy’s summer and afterschool programs, your children will be instructed by teachers who care for them as if they were family. 

We ensure our young Black scholars—rising first, second or third-graders—benefit from Black teachers who integrate a culturally-responsive, affirming and sustaining early-literacy curriculum.
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