The Mankato School Board in Minnesota voted unanimously for a new policy that allows non-white teachers exclusively to be eligible for “additional stipends,” and for teachers to be segregated by race.
The policy states professional development funds may be used as:
- additional stipends as incentives to mentors of color or who are American Indian;
- financial supports for professional learning community affinity groups across schools within and between districts for teachers from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups to come together throughout the school year;
- programs for induction aligned with the school district or school mentorship program during the first three (3) years of teaching, especially for teachers from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups;
Grants for these purposes may be used for “retention strategies or protection from unrequested leave of absences in the beginning years of employment for teachers of color and teachers who are American Indian,” the policy states, adding:
Retention strategies may include providing financial incentives for teachers of color and teachers who are American Indian … and placing American Indian educators at sites with other American Indian educators and educators of color at sites with other educators of color to reduce isolation and increase opportunity for collegial support.
Board members defended the policy of placing same-race teachers in work environments, claiming it is not “segregation,” reported AlphaNews Tuesday.
“When you’re one [minority] of a [white] majority it can be very isolating and lonely,” said board member Erin Roberts, elaborating:
To have a support system in place for them is not to segregate them, it is absolutely to support them … It’s not about trying to throw the few [BIPOC] individuals we have into one building. It’s about showing them they aren’t alone.
“It creates global citizens at the end of the day,” Vice Chair Kenneth Reid also said, according to AlphaNews.
State Rep. Jeremy Munson (R), however, condemned the new policy, which mirrors a new Minnesota statute.
“Our largest local school district just voted to pay people differently, not on merit, or by the content of their character, but based solely on the color of their skin,” he said.