Protecting children and investing in their education and wellbeing can often feel like a battle. The seat that the author now holds at the proverbial education table is crucial in not only developing a well-rounded and well-equipped student body, but it is also in seeing herself as a role model to future leaders--both women and future leaders of…

Principals who pay attention to their own learning serve as models for others. What principals do every day, how they view and value student and educator learning, how they organize their staff into learning communities, and the designs they support for those teams to learn make a significant difference in the learning of those they serve. In this…

Stella M. Flores writes about how she learned to participate in the American political process through lessons from her immigrant family. As a quantitative scholar, she documents the commitment to rigorous, evidence-based research on equity noting that not all datasets are without politics or bias. From this perspective, the story of the Latino in…

Last year, when students at Ridgecrest Intermediate School in Palos Verdes, California, were asked to name scientists, their answers--Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein, Bill Nye the Science Guy--reflected a common perception. Most of the leading scientists they came up with were white, male, or dead. Although women and people of…

If we are to attract more women and minorities to computing we must engage students at an early age. As part of its mission to increase participation of women and underrepresented minorities in computing, the Increasing Student Participation in Research Development Program (INSPIRED) conducts computing academies for high school students. The…

Between 1994 and 2003, employment in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields grew by a remarkable 23 percent, compared with 17 percent in non-STEM fields, according to federal data. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts continued strong growth in STEM job openings through 2014, with emphasis on life sciences, environmental…

In a field dominated almost exclusively by men, successful women administrators in public schools can provide a rich source of information concerning the advantages and disadvantages of being a "female executive." After briefly discussing well-documented internal and external barriers to women's administrative career aspirations, this…

Describes the Houston Independent School District's support program involving pairs of beginning and mentor teachers and several professional development specialists who support and train the mentors and help the novice teachers on a personal basis. The specialists are an important factor in retention and development of first year teachers,…

A Texas project provided a realistic recruitment model for minority teacher candidates. Precollege students attended casual group discussions with minority university students and an event involving discussions with university and public school staff and students (including minorities). This model let them realize college is attainable and…