STAR: Smart Teachers as Role models

"Role models for the last mile"

Overview

What is Smart Teachers As Rolemodels?

 The Smart Teachers As Role models (STAR) program, an initiative of the Phelps Stokes Fund, focuses on preparing outstanding young men of color as educational leaders and classroom teachers who understand the unique needs of smart boys who are not succeeding in school. Mitigating this educational crisis, these young men of color serve as role models and breakdown stereotypes for all students.

Why is STAR Important?

Research indicates that a connection exists between low student performance and the lack of role models, particularly for young boys of color. A recent Newsweek article ("The Boy Crisis" January 30, 2006) reiterates that "One of the most reliable predictors of whether a boy will succeed or fail in high school rests on a single question: does he have a man in his life to look up to?" Studies show that children work for teachers to whom they can relate. The Dellums Commission, funded by the Kellogg Foundation to document and reform public policies that intentionally or unintentionally limit the life pathways for young men of color, recently completed a comprehensive analysis that supports these efforts as well. STAR addresses the recommendations of the final Dellums Commission report from an educational perspective.

Who Benefits from STAR?

Beneficiaries include institutions of higher education, scholars, researchers, educational practitioners, policymakers, and anyone concerned with developing young men of color as role models and leaders who become teachers.