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Dr. Jennifer Robinson, Executive Director of the Center of Pedagogy,  about the teacher-student diversity gap that has widened in the state.

The article stated: College costs, the fees required of standardized tests like the edTPA, and other financial stressors make teaching an increasingly impractical career choice, she added.

That’s especially true for people of color, who already grapple with an entrenched wealth gap, said Dr. Robinson.

Teachers union officials say boosting pay for first-time teachers would help. Starting salaries for teachers with bachelor’s degrees range from $54,000 in Hopewell to $58,000 in �鶹��ý���� to $61,000 in Jersey City. The average starting salary for most New Jersey teachers is about $56,400, according to the New Jersey Education Association.

The union has a “$60K the first day” campaign that aims to lift starting pay statewide to $60,000 a year, but only 77 of the state’s 600 districts have met that target. (Another 35 have approved contracts that would hit that mark in future years, a union spokesman said.)

Dr. Robinson said policymakers intent on getting more teachers of color into classrooms should focus on removing the profession’s financial barriers.

Teacher certification requires a semester or more of full-time student teaching — and that’s typically unpaid, she noted.

“How do you pay tuition, while apprenticing with an experienced teacher full-time and you’re not getting any compensation whatsoever?” Dr. Robinson said.