Special Educators of Color Are Underrepresented across States: A Challenge for Leaders

The objective of this article is to examine the degree to which different U.S. states have a special education teaching workforce that is racially/ethnically representative of students with disabilities in their state. Using the Teacher-Student Parity Index (TSPI), a standardized metric for comparing representation across states with different demographics, the authors calculated the extent to which teacher and student racial/ethnic diversity is aligned in all 50 U.S. states. At the end of the article, they provide specific recommendations for cultivating a racially/ethnically diverse special education teacher workforce, including how states, districts, and schools can use the TSPI to assess changes in parity over time.