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are prerequisites for students transitioning into coursework at the university level.
            However, these courses require professional development for the teachers to remain
            updated on content that rural districts often cannot provide (Hott, 2018.)

                               Rural Schools and Diverse Educators
               In addition to the lack of courses available for rural students in the United States,
            a lack of multicultural teachers is also evident. Research suggests that multicultural
            teachers  provide  models  of  community  citizens
            who  have  different  races,  ethnicities,  and  cultures
            and can inform students about biases and negative
            stereotypes  that  other,  unknowing  people  may       In addition to the lack of
            have.  This  exposure  to  a  variety  of  people  will
            help students  learn to  live  in  a  multicultural and  courses available for rural
            multilingual world. Diverse teachers can also share      students in the United
            the advantages of using culturally relevant pedagogy
            in all curricular areas (Adams & Farnsworth, 2020;   States, a lack of multicultural
            Gay, 2018; Ladson-Billings, 1995). It is essential     teachers is also evident.
            for  rural  school  districts  to  pay  attention  to  the
            races  and  ethnicities  presently  represented  in  the
            classrooms and schools. The NCES indicated that
            the number of diverse teachers is minimal (2023). Nationwide, teachers from all
            races and ethnicities are represented in the statistics, with many rural schoolteachers
            being Native American and Alaska Native. These two ethnicities comprise 41.1% of
            the rural public-school teachers; in addition, 23.2% are White, non-Hispanic, 11.0%
            are Black or African American, and 10.2% are Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
            (NCES, 2023).
               In Texas,  the TEA  provides  indicators  of  all  races  and  ethnicities  of  regular
            classroom  teachers:  American  Indian,  Alaskan  Native,  Asian,  Black/African
            American, Hispanic/Latino, Pacific Islander, White, two or more races/ethnicities,
            and other/not specified. In rural schools, White teachers are in the majority, while
            the number of classroom teachers representing other races and ethnicities has grown
            minimally over the years.
               Race and ethnicity data for principals in rural Texas schools are similar to statistics
            for classroom teachers. White principals have consistently been in the majority, with
            57.77% serving in the 2021–2022 school year. Hispanic/Latino principals made up
            the next largest race/ethnicity at 25.44% for the 2021–2022 school year. Remaining
            races/ethnicities of principals in that year included 14.64% Black/African American,
            .79% Asian, and .31% American Indian/Alaska Native (TEA, 2023).
               School  administrators  provide  the  leadership  necessary  to  bring  forth  school
            achievement  and  success.  School  administrators  are  charged  with  many  tasks,
            from managing students, faculty, and staff to ensuring building maintenance and
            safety.  Research  studies  have  substantiated  that  the  challenges  faced  by  school
            administrators in rural communities differ from those of school administrators in
            urban school districts. One of the challenges is the need for more research on rural
            school districts (Pendola & Fuller, 2022; Sutherland et al., 2022). Most recently, in
            their research, Sutherland et al. (2022) found that rural Texas school administrators
            are primarily trying to “level out the playing field” by identifying the systemic racism



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