Chants and prayers rang out in the Florida Capitol last week as Black lawmakers and a prominent civil-rights attorney decried the state’s rejection of an African American studies course, while Gov. Ron DeSantis’ team declared a victory over the course’s developer.
The dust-up stemmed from the state Department of Education listing several “concerns found within” an Advanced Placement African American studies course that is in development by The College Board.
In a Jan. 12 letter, the state agency’s Office of Articulation advised a senior director at the College Board that the course “significantly lacks educational value” and wouldn’t be offered in Florida high-school classrooms, unless changes are made. In a separate infographic released by the department last week, education officials took issue with topics such as “Black queer studies” and “the reparations movement.”
The DeSantis administration’s move drew national attention and a rebuke from the White House, along with the threat of a lawsuit from civil-rights attorney Ben Crump.
“The question really is this, brothers and sisters. Are we going to let Gov. DeSantis, or anybody, exterminate Black history from the classrooms in Florida?” Crump said during an event at the Capitol Wednesday, flanked by Black legislators and three students who would be plaintiffs in a legal challenge.
Crump, however, appeared to take a wait-and-see posture about suing the state.
“We are here to give notice to Gov. DeSantis that if he does not negotiate with the College Board to allow AP African American studies to be taught in the classrooms across the state of Florida, that these three young people will be the lead plaintiffs in an historic lawsuit,” Crump added.
Meanwhile, the College Board released a statement last week reinforcing that the course’s development is still underway. The organization said it plans to “release the official framework” for the course next week, suggesting changes could come, but didn’t mention input from the DeSantis administration.
“Before a new AP course is made broadly available, it is piloted in a small number of high schools to gather feedback from high schools and colleges. The official course framework incorporates this feedback and defines what students will encounter on the AP Exam for college credit and placement,” the statement said.
The board’s statement prompted DeSantis’ press secretary, Bryan Griffin, to take a victory lap.
“Excellent news. Thanks to [DeSantis’] principled stand for education over identity politics, the College Board will be revising the course for the entire nation. The Florida Department of Education … will review the changes for compliance once resubmitted,” Griffin said in a tweet Tuesday.
With possible changes to the course now a closely watched issue, House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell, D-Tampa, balked at the governor’s influence over potential revisions.
“We’ve been told that this AP African American history course will be altered and resubmitted, and most likely they’ll make enough changes for the governor to approve it, but at what cost? Are we really OK with Ron DeSantis deciding what is acceptable?” Driskell said.
Ryan Dailey reports for the News Service of Florida.
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