Pamlico Schools agrees to discuss staff diversity after protests from parents, NAACP

After several months of protests by concerned parents and members of the local NAACP, the Pamlico County School System has agreed to a meeting to discuss the lack of diversity among its staff and administrators.

Pamlico County NAACP member Vickie Moseley-Jones said a meeting has been set for Monday, Jan. 31 at the Pamlico County Board of Education at 2 p.m.

Previous: Pamlico County Schools has a diversity problem with teachers and administrators

She said the discussion will include three local parents, three members of the Pamlico Board of Education, Superintendent Lisa Jackson, Human Resources Director Shakia Robinson, and Ervin Patrick, director of Community Outreach, Equity, and School Improvement. Moseley-Jones, Pamlico NAACP President Douglas Pearsall, and Diane Lemieux, president of Pamlico Progressives Democratic Caucus, will also be present.

Moseley-Jones said BOE Chairman John Prescott initiated the meeting.

“We’re really glad about this. I must admit they’re making a conscious effort to hear us and to hear the community, so I feel like we’re making strides. I’m not sure what the results will be but I think it will be an opportunity for us to have at least an open dialogue. I see this as a first step,” said Moseley-Jones.

Meeting comes after months of frustration

The NAACP attempted to add a discussion of the diversity issue to the Pamlico BOE’s Nov. and Dec. 2021 meeting agendas, but were rebuffed.

In a response letter, Prescott wrote that the board meeting “was not an effective forum for such a discussion.”

Frustration among parents led to a protest last month at the Pamlico County Board of Education office. The protestors said they were concerned with both the lack of minority staff being hired by the school system and the inability to retain those that are hired.

The majority of residents that came out said they were aware of a number of minority teachers that have left for other school systems due to their lack of advancement in Pamlico County schools.

Related reporting: Parents demand action on Pamlico Schools minority staff hiring and retention

Organizer Aniyah Avrawhawm, who has a 7-year-old and a 5-year-old in the school system, said she was most concerned with the teachers that have left for other jobs.

“A major problem is we need them to hire our Pamlico staff that they let go that were qualified to be lead teachers. We need them back in our community, that’s very important,” she commented. “The people who grew up around here, who can relate.”

Data confirms lack of Black, Hispanic teachers and administrators at Pamlico Schools

Concerns about the hiring practices of Pamlico County Schools came to the fore last November when the county NAACP presented the BOE with complaints they had received from community members. The complaints centered around two specific assertions:

Black and Hispanic school system staff that meet the qualifications are not given the opportunity to advance to lead teaching positions; and the diversity of the school system’s teachers and administrators does not reflect the county’s racial makeup.

Data presented by the school system last November seems to back up those claims.

According to school system data, the Pamlico County School currently has 12 Black teachers out of a total of 110, making up approximately 10.91% of the school system’s teachers. The data showed that out of 20 district and school level administrators, only five are Black.

One Pamlico County school, Fred A. Anderson Elementary, has no Black teachers or administrators.

The school system’s student population looks far different, with 218 Black students making up 18.08% of the county’s total student population of 1,206.

According to the 2020 census, Pamlico County's Black population stands at 2,061, or 16.8% of the county's total population of 12,276.

Those who identify as two or more races was 5.1%, while the Hispanic or Latino population was 4.0%.

Pamlico County Schools currently has 119 Hispanic students, with only two Hispanic teachers and one administrator.

This article originally appeared on Sun Journal: Pamlico Schools agrees to meet parents, NAACP on diversity problem