California’s high school students will not be required to take an ethnic studies class to graduate. At least, not for now.
Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed Assembly Bill 331 on Wednesday, Sept. 30, his deadline to approve bills in the most recent legislative session.
“There is much uncertainty about the appropriate K-12 model curriculum for ethnic studies,” Newsom wrote in his veto statement. “The latest draft, which is currently out for review, still needs revision.”
The bill was the brainchild of Assemblyman Jose Medina, D-Riverside, a one-time ethnic studies teacher for the Riverside Unified School District. His former district, and the Los Angeles Unified School District, both made ethnic studies a graduation requirement in the past few months. Medina expressed regret over Newsom’s decision.
“The veto of AB 331 is a missed opportunity for the State of California and a disservice to our students who have called for ethnic studies in their schools,” Medina wrote in a statement issued by his office. “This veto comes at a time when the Trump Administration is threatening to punish school districts for teaching anti-racism and anti-bias curriculum.”
On Sept. 17, President Donald Trump blasted public schools’ lessons on racism and slavery as “left-wing indoctrination” and said he would create a national commission that would promote a “pro-American curriculum” on American history.
“As civil unrest and racial tension have risen across the nation, California has marketed itself as a progressive beacon working to overcome its past transgressions and chart an equitable future,” Medina wrote. “In order to build racial justice in this state and country, all of our students need to learn the real history of America – and that history includes the diverse experiences and perspectives of people of color.”
Had it been approved, the bill would have required the Class of 2030, and subsequent classes, to have taken ethnic studies in order to get a high school diploma.
But AB 331, which was introduced last year, ran into problems with its model curriculum. The curriculum, which was to be an example for districts creating their own programs, was accused of being anti-Semitic and for focusing on African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanics and Latinos and Native Americans. On Sept. 10, a coalition of 80 groups, including B’nai B’rith International, wrote a letter to Newsom, urging him to veto the bill, citing concerns over politicized and anti-Semitic viewpoints in the curriculum.
The California Teachers Association expressed regret at the veto.
“We know that ‘justice delayed is justice denied’ and while we are disappointed with this setback, we look forward to joining Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and State Board President Linda Darling Hammond on developing an authentic ethnic studies program that our students deserve and our society needs,” CTA President E. Toby Boyd said in a statement released by the statewide teachers union.
Coming up with an ethnic studies curriculum on which everyone can agree is a tall task, according to Marcia Godwin, a professor of public administration at the University of La Verne.
“This brings to mind the old saying that a camel is a horse designed by a committee,” she wrote in an email on Thursday. “Newsom very much sees himself as a policy expert who masters the details of each bill. The economic challenges with the pandemic also mean that we can expect Newsom to exercise fiscal restraint in his decisions on whether to sign or veto bills.”
Even though it won’t be a statewide mandate, some Southern California school districts are making ethnic studies a requirement for their students.
In August, the Los Angeles Unified school board voted to require it, starting with the Class of 2024. The Riverside Unified school board voted to do the same in September, starting with the Class of 2025.
“Especially at this time of racial reckoning and divisiveness over the issue of race, providing ethnic studies is more important than ever,” said Los Angeles school board member Kelly Gonez, who introduced the district’s ethnic studies resolution. “While we will continue to lead in LAUSD … I do hope that there will be a path forward to providing these critical courses to all students in California.”
It’s likely that an ethnic studies graduation requirement will come up again in a future session of the California legislature.
Medina first introduced an ethnic studies bill in 2016. Gov. Jerry Brown rejected AB 2772 in 2018, saying California’s students were “overburdened” with existing graduation requirements.
In August, Newsom signed AB 1460, which made ethnic studies a graduation requirement for California State University students. The Cal State system had made that a graduation requirement itself in July. And on Wednesday, he didn’t close the door on an ethnic studies requirement in future.
“In California, we don’t tolerate our diversity. We celebrate it,” Newsom’s veto message concluded. “That should be reflected in our high school curriculum. I look forward to our model curriculum achieving these goals.”
Staff writer Linh Tat contributed to this report.
Source: Orange County Register
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