Fall 2025 Update

October 1, 2025 |

Happy Autumn out there! The local schools are humming along through this new-ish school year.

We are happy to report that the number of teaching applicants in general seems to be bouncing back from all-time lows during and right after the pandemic. Buena Vista City Public Schools now has three employees of color, including one paraprofessional active in the classroom each day. Lexington City now has several substitute teachers of color. RCPS has 18 new hires, including a guidance counselor of color and three teaching assistants of color. Some of RCPS' new hires are enrolled in the iTeach Program, which is promising for the future of educators of color in our area!

We hope to welcome this community to an event sponsored by the Rockbridge NAACP--in January or February at the Randolph Street United Methodist Church in Lexington.

The Irma Thompson Educators of Color Board is very grateful for its relationship with administrators from all three local public school systems and with the Rockbridge Teacher Education Consortium.

We continue to encourage people interested in switching to a teaching career and young people interested in teacher education certification to contact us.