Travis Elliott is a native of Camden who attended Camden public schools. Now he is a middle school science teacher at the city’s Cooper’s Poynt Family School, which serves students pre-kindergarten through eighth grade and where, says Elliott, “most of my students are the children of my friends.” He is also one of only four Black or Hispanic teachers  in a school where 99% of students are of color, even though achievement “significantly increases” when students have teachers who look like them. As such, Elliott felt “rejuvenated” after attending  the Black Men in Education Convening, a three-day conference this past November sponsored by the Philadelphia-based non-profit called the Center for Black Educator Development (CBED).

Cooper’s Poynt’s lack of teacher diversity is not limited to Camden. In fact, according to a new report from the National Council of Teacher Quality, while nationally 21% of teachers are of color, New Jersey’s percentage is far lower and dropping: In 2014 8.6% of NJ teachers were Black but in 2022 only 6.5% were. Half of NJ schools don’t have a single Black educator. (In 2023 then-NJ Education Commissioner Angelica Allen-McMillan said by the end of 2025, 56% of newly-hired teachers would be of color, a goal unlikely to be attained.)

One of the strategies CBED and NCTQ recommends to diversify the teacher taskforce — and raise the achievement of students of all colors– is “multiple high-quality pathways into teaching to meet the needs of all people who may be interested in the profession,” programs like Gateway U and the NJ Center for Teaching and Learning.

This is how Elliott became a teacher. He recounts that in 2015 he graduated from college with a degree in recreation. He planned to coach football but, when he arrived back in Camden, “I was broke, I needed money.” In 2017 he took a job as a substitute teacher at Mastery Cramer Hill (a “renaissance” school) and in 2019 became a paraprofessional at Cooper’s Poynt.  With encouragement from colleagues and administrators, he earned his teaching certification and became a middle school science teacher. For Elliott, teaching at Cooper’s Poynt is like coming home; as a child he had attended nearby Pine Poynt in North Camden (now a renaissance school) and his aunt teaches in the same building where he has a classroom. 

His students are needy— most come from low-income households, 22.4% have disabilities, and only 11% can read or do math on grade level— which means “I’m more than a teacher. I’m a therapist, a coach, a shoulder to cry on, a family member.” Elliott adds, “people like to shield kids but they know what’s going on and I really respect my students.  Just because you’re 14 years old doesn’t mean your opinion isn’t valid! I encourage them to ask questions, to form their own opinions. One child says something, another responds, I hear them out, and they come to a resolution.”

This past Fall Camden Education Fund paid for 20 Camden-based Black male educators to attend the Center for Black Educator Development Convening, which gathered 1,200 educators from 40 states and 4 countries in Philadelphia to create what CEF Executive Director Giana Campbell described as “a powerful space to gather, learn, and connect with like-minded individuals, offering  the resources, inspiration, and support needed to thrive in this crucial work together.”  That support is badly needed: As former U.S. Education Secretary John King said, Black teachers face an “invisible tax” that includes “unrealistic expectations for Black men in education to fulfill schoolwide disciplinary and mentoring roles on top of teaching responsibilities, combined with an unfounded disrespect for their expertise and perspectives.” The purpose of the Convening is to build a community that improves the lives of these teachers and the students they serve.

Elliott says his experience at the conference validated Campbell’s prediction.

“There are so many different dynamics, so many administrative duties [during a school day], that are not about kids,” he explains. “Teaching is so overwhelming that sometimes you want to stop. It’s a tough job! The conference reminded me why I do this, how I can make a difference for kids like me. It was a validation of how important teachers are.  You get your flowers from others and I got them at the Convening.  This is why I am doing this, to give back and make a difference, so my students can learn early on what I didn’t learn until later.”