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ABOUT
The Pennsylvania Educator Diversity Consortium is a grassroots organization of early childhood, PK-12,
higher education, non-profit, community, and government leaders striving to increase the number of teachers of color, specifically those who identify as Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color, in Pennsylvania. There are over 570 individuals, many of whom represent nearly 275 organizations across the Commonwealth, who are committed to PEDC's vision of a future in which each learner in Pennsylvania experiences ethnically, racially, and linguistically diverse and culturally relevant and sustaining educators leading their classrooms and educational institutions.
Brief History: An earlier iteration of the PEDC was a component of the Pennsylvania Department of Education's educator diversity pilot initiative, Aspiring to Educate, launched in November 2019 in Southeast PA. In Spring 2021, the Consortium members established the group's new identity as the Pennsylvania Educator Diversity Consortium to lean into the need for ecosystem change, which requires wide support from various stakeholders across the Commonwealth. We always welcome new members interested in learning and contributing with us!
Accomplishments: Over the last two years, Consortium members have collaborated to
co-develop Culturally-Relevant and Sustaining Education Competencies for Pennsylvania educators; write toolkits that describe various efforts to recruit, retain, and mentor teachers of color; create a set of policy recommendations for the state and advocate for those recommendations to be adopted in legislation and in regulation; and host two-day public virtual summits during which stakeholders around the Commonwealth meet to learn, share, and strategize about challenges and opportunities.
PEDC's Authentic Purpose, Mission, and Vision
PEDC's Authentic Purpose:
We bring together individuals, organizations, agencies, and institutions in a structured way to collectively co-create an anti-racist, racially diverse, and culturally relevant and sustaining education system where every learner in Pennsylvania thrives—academically and personally. We are committed to an equitable and ethnically, racially, and linguistically diverse workforce that centers the recruitment, mentorship, retention, and well-being of BIPOC educators. Together we are stronger!
PEDC's Mission:
PEDC seeks to eliminate the demographic mismatch between educators and learners of color while ensuring that learners of every identity experience the benefits of a racially, ethnically, and linguistically diverse educator workforce. We convene and collaborate with invested partners to advance educator diversity and the development of culturally relevant and sustaining educators and systems in early childhood, K-12, postsecondary, and higher education by increasing knowledge and skills, creating resources, and advocating for equitable education policies.
PEDC's Vision:
PEDC is a national leader in diversifying the educator workforce by influencing policy, practice, and resource development. We envision a future where each learner in Pennsylvania experiences ethnically, racially, and linguistically diverse, and culturally relevant educators leading their classrooms and educational institutions.
Introduction to PEDC's Six Regions
PEDC has established six regions in the state of Pennsylvania! This will assist partners in each region to understand and respond to strategies based on regional needs to diversify the educator workforce and advance the development of culturally relevant and sustaining educators and systems. The first region established is PEDC's Southwest Region, which has been up and running for over a year. In the next few years, PEDC plans to roll out each region. Find your region below!
The accomplishments of the Pennsylvania Educator Diversity Consortium reflect the dedication of many committed people who volunteer their time and talents to the Consortium's efforts. Those with specific facilitation roles are included below for reference but there are many who contribute significant leadership to the work. Please see the acknowledgements section of each document posted in Resources for a full accounting of the immense effort undertaken by Consortium members across the Commonwealth to realize our shared vision for educator diversity and culturally relevant and sustaining education in Pennsylvania.
PEDC's Current Leadership
Dr. Donna-Marie Cole-Malott
PEDC Co-Director
Donna-Marie is an Assistant Professor of Professional and Secondary Education at East Stroudsburg University.
Dr. Juliet Curci
PEDC Co-Director
Juliet is the Assistant Dean of College Access and Persistence at Temple University's College of Education and Human Development.
Karen Parker Thompson
PEDC Advisor
Karen is a Technical Assistance Specialist with the Region 4 Comprehensive Center.
Laura Boyce
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Policy & Advocacy Cmte. Chair
Laura is the Executive Director of Teach Plus Pennsylvania.
Dr. Marc Brasof
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Marc is an Associate Professor of Education and the Co-Director of Social Action & Justice Education Fellowship (SAJE) at Arcadia University.
Sharif El-Mekki
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Sharif is the Founder and CEO of The Center for Black Educator Development.
James Fogarty
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
James is the Executive Director of A+ Schools in Pittsburgh.
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Mal Davis
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Mal is a Stoneleigh Emerging Leader Fellow with The Center for Black Educator Development.
Raymond Fields, Jr.
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Raymond is the Founding Executive Director of Urban Teachers Philadelphia.
Dr. Andrea Terrero Gabbadon
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Andrea is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Education at Swarthmore College.
Kizzy Morris
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Kizzy is the Provost and Chief Academic Officer at Cheyney University.
Rochelle Peterson-Ansari
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Rochelle is CEO of Perceptions, Unlimited, an independent education consulting group, and an adjunct professor at LaSalle and Arcadia Universities.
Dr. Laura Roy
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Laura is an Associate Professor and Chair of Education at LaSalle University.
Dr. Anthony Stevenson
Acting Circle of Leaders Member
Anthony is the Human Resources Director for the Tredyffrin-Easttown School District and leads the Southeastern Pennsylvania Educators of Color Network out of Villanova University.