After receiving his doctorate, Turner faced problems finding a job in academia. He was considered for a professorship at the University of Chicago, but the professor who invited him to apply died and, according to sociologist and civil rights activist W. E. B. Du Bois, his replacement refused to hire a Black scientist.[^knowable] At the Tuskegee Institute, Turner was turned down because president Booker T. Washington reportedly could not afford to pay the salaries of both Turner and another famous Black American scientist, George Washington Carver.[^okstate] Turner consequently worked as a high school teacher for the remainder of his career, spending most of it at Sumner High School in St. Louis, Missouri. He continued to pursue his research and publication throughout his career, even while teaching high school. I was amazed to learn that Turner used bees as teaching tools to demonstrate principles of complex behavior even in his high school biology classes. One of my favorite notes suggesting his effectiveness in this regard comes from one of his students:[^okstate]
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