Research has shown that students of color benefit from having teachers who share their racial background. The paraprofessionals and education assistants currently working in schools represent one potential source of such teachers. Many of them are committed to schools and students but need support to obtain a teaching license. Laura Delgado, Kristin Baese, and Ally Hauptman describe a program for helping these paraprofessionals become full-time lead teachers by taking graduate courses while continuing to work as assistants and receiving mentoring support as they move through the licensure process.
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