Dr. Ro’Shaun Bailey, the vice president of the Greenwood Leflore Consolidated School Board, says he is concerned about the lack of men working in the district.
Bailey
At a board work session Wednesday night, Bailey said he had re-ceived numbers on the demographics for district employees and was surprised by them.
“It is certainly an honor to work with you phenomenal young ladies on this board, and it is my understanding that the education field, in general, is female-dominated … but the percentages and the numbers really caught me off guard,” Bailey said.
According to the data provided to Bailey, of the 669 employees in the district, only 168, or around 25%, are male.
Some other statistics Bailey presented:
nOf its 14 guidance counselors, only two are male.
nOf its 31 administration employees, only seven are male.
nOf the 12 principals, only five, or around 42%, are male — a number that Bailey said is “decent.”
Of the overall totals, he said, “I can’t speak for everybody here, but that’s concerning for me.”
Bailey suggested that the board’s attorney, Kelvin Pulley, check to see whether it would be discriminatory in any way if the district looked into providing some sort of incentive to attract more male faculty members to the district.
He also said providing more support to help teachers advance from teachers to principals and from principals to administrators could help better the district — a way of “building their own.”
Samantha Milton, the board president, gave “kudos” to Bailey.
Dr. Mary Brown, the district’s superintendent, said to Bailey’s point of upward job mobility that she encourages all employees to look at those options.
“I am proud to have the male representation in the district, but I would encourage the employees to just continue to work hard, continue to not only go after the certification (needed) but to apply when those positions become available,” she said.
Brown also added that she was glad Bailey raised this point and would keep watching the numbers.
•Contact Adam Bakst at 581-7233 or abakst@gwcommonwealth.com. On Twitter at @AdamBakst_GWCW.
