Overview

Concord Public Schools and Concord-Carlisle Regional School District have a strategic initiative to recruit, hire, mentor, and retain a more racially and ethnically diverse faculty and staff. We continue to adjust our hiring practices to address the diversity gap between our students of color and their teachers and support staff of color. We have underscored the urgency to amplify the need for teacher and staff diversification in the district so that effective teaching and learning meet all students’ diverse needs, especially faculty, staff, and students of color.    

Supporting Our Educators of Color

In the 2020-21 school year, we provided an update to the School Committee on our District hiring efforts. Qualitative data (focused on the experiences of our Educators of Color across our elementary, middle, and high schools) was gathered through a focus group. Our discussions revealed how our Educators of Color need an affinity group and space to gather and share their experiences, and discuss effective classroom management practices. As a direct result of the focus group, the Educators of Color Affinity Mentor Group was established. The primary goals of the Affinity Mentor Group are to support the professional growth of new Educators of Color in the District; address unique needs and challenges that Educators of Color encounter as they get acclimated to their school culture and establish working relationships with colleagues; and connect with other Educators of Color new to the District through the PreK-12 BIPOC Affinity Group staff Gatherings to build a greater sense of connection and belonging through shared experiences. 

District Demographics

Based on internal human resources data (as of June 30, 2022) and external data from the Annual DESE Accountability Report, there are 655 faculty and staff in our district. 577 (or 88%) identify as White, and 78 (or 12%) identify as persons of color.