A director like me: Teacher-leader racial/ethnic match and job outcomes in child care centers

• Published in: Early childhood research quarterly 2023, Vol.62, p.369-384
• Main Authors: Hall, Todd, Bassok, Daphna, Doromal, Justin B., Markowitz, Anna J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Centers; Child care; Directors; Ethnicity; Job satisfaction; Leaders; Leadership; Quantitative; Race; Racial/ethnic match; Teachers; Turnover
• ISSN: 0885-2006; 1873-7706
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2022.10.004

•Explored teacher-leader racial/ethnic match in child care centers•Used survey and administrative data from 1,011 teachers at 188 child care centers•White teachers had leader racial match more often than Black and Hispanic teachers•With controls, match had no significant link to views of leader, satisfaction, or turnover The leaders of child care centers shape the everyday experiences of child care teachers, who play a critical role in supporting young children. While research has linked leadership to policy-relevant outcomes such as teacher job satisfaction and turnover, little is known about specific leader characteristics linked to teacher job outcomes. In K-12, one key factor associated with increased job satisfaction and lower turnover is teacher-principal racial/ethnic match, however there is no evidence to date on how teacher-leader racial/ethnic match relates to teacher job outcomes in child care settings. Using data from a sample of 1,011 teachers at child care centers in Virginia, this study documents the prevalence of teacher-leader racial/ethnic match. We estimate associations between racial/ethnic match and teachers’ views of leadership, job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and turnover after six months. Although two-thirds of child care teachers experienced racial/ethnic match with their child care center leader, Black and Hispanic teachers were far less likely to experience racial/ethnic match than White teachers. We did not find significant associations between racial/ethnic match and teacher job outcomes after adjusting for covariates. We discuss potential explanations, directions for future research, and implications for policy.