TEACHER DIVERSITY

In Figure CLE-8, we present cumulative new-teacher sector leaver rates for each sector, by race and ethnicity.
Note that, for ease of presentation, these rates are not disaggregated by cohort, which means that the bottommost
row of each table includes cumulative outcomes for one new-teacher cohort (the earliest one we can
identify in our dataset), the second from the bottom includes the first two new-teacher cohorts, the third up includes
the first three, and so on. In addition, given the charter school expansion and district school contraction
during this time period, the rates should only be compared across sectors with great caution. We also reiterate
our caution about the potential influence of sample sizes on these results.
FIGURE CLE-8: NEW TEACHER CUMULATIVE SECTOR LEAVER RATES, BY RACE AND ETHNICITY AND SECTOR,
2000–2011
District Sector, 2000-2011 Charter Sector, 2000-2011
Percent of new
Percent of new
White Black Hispanic
teachers who leave
teachers who leave
White Black Hispanic
Within 1 year 16.2 14.7 9.2 Within 1 year 35.0 44.5
Within 2 years 29.1 26.1 21.1 Within 2 years 49.7 59.3
Within 3 years 44.1 37.3 36.8 Within 3 years 57.5 66.8
Within 4 years 49.4 42.9 40.8 Within 4 years 62.1 71.0
Insuff.
Within 5 years 51.8 45.5 40.8 Within 5 years 64.1 73.7
sample
Within 6 years 52.7 47.5 40.8 Within 6 years 65.9 75.5
size
Within 7 years 53.7 48.6 40.8 Within 7 years 66.3 77.1
Within 8 years 55.2 50.4 40.8 Within 8 years 66.7 78.2
Within 9 years 57.1 52.3 43.4 Within 9 years 66.9 78.7
Within 10 years 58.6 53.3 43.4 Within 10 years 67.0 79.1
Note to figure: Sample sizes are small for Hispanic teachers, new-teacher cohorts in district schools and new-teacher cohorts in charter schools
in the early years of our data (see Tables CLE-A and CLE-B). Interpret rates with caution.
Cumulative new-teacher leaver rates in district schools varied among White, Black and Hispanic teachers, with
Whites consistently leaving at the highest rates and Hispanics consistently leaving at the lowest rates. By the
end of 10 years, White teachers had left at a rate 5 percent higher than Black teachers and 15 percent higher
than Hispanic teachers. In charter schools, leaver rates were higher among Blacks compared with Whites, by a
consistently large margin.
6. WHICH STUDENTS ARE SERVED BY THE SCHOOLS IN WHICH BLACK AND HISPANIC TEACHERS
WORK?
Figure CLE-9 presents the average rate of students’ eligibility for free and reduced-price lunch (FRL), a rough
proxy for low-income status, and the average percentage of Black and Hispanic students served by the schools
where teachers of different races and ethnicities work. Please note that these are teacher averages, not sector
averages, and that they have been pooled across all years.
ALBERT SHANKER INSTITUTE 50 THE STATE OF TEACHER DIVERSITY