Despite Legislative Onslaught, Kentucky Teacher of the Year Envisions Positive Future
“I’ve definitely seen shifts in teachers feeling confident to speak out about what they believe. It requires someone to really put themselves out there.” Teachers are already encouraged to give more of themselves than their job description demands — sometimes in service of rigorous academic reporting and sometimes in service of caring for the student beyond their retention of grade-11 vocabulary. But in addition to those oft-unrecognized demands, LGBTQ and BIPOC teachers are often solely responsible for cultivating safe and enriching spaces for similar students. This act of “putting themselves out there” is increasingly weighing on Carver and his colleagues.
