New Jersey ranks as one of the most diverse states in the nation where approximately 56 percent of students are non-white. However, only 16 percent of teachers and administrators are people of color according to state data.

To address the lack of diversity among the state’s teachers, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed into a law a pilot program to recruit men of color into the teaching profession and place them in low-performing schools. The pilot program will begin in six schools where students struggle to pass state assessments in reading and math. The pilot program will also articulate criteria for recruiting candidates into an alternative teaching certification program.

Read the Governor’s announcement here.

And media coverage of the pilot program here.