Overview:
Richard Woods has announced that AP African American Studies course will be exempt from the state's divisive concepts law.
Georgia’s state school superintendent has reversed his course and announced that Advanced Placement courses, including the AP African American Studies course, will be exempt from the state’s divisive concepts law.
State School Superintendent Richard Woods said Wednesday that AP, International Baccalaureate, and dual enrollment courses will not be restricted by O.C.G.A. § 20-1-11, which prohibits the teaching of certain concepts related to race and gender in K-12 classrooms.
The decision comes after weeks of uncertainty surrounding the implementation of these advanced courses in light of the legislation.
“As I have said, I will follow the law,” Woods stated. “In compliance with this opinion, the AP African American Studies course will be added to the state-funded course catalog effective immediately.”
The clarification was prompted by a response letter from the Attorney General’s Office to the sponsor of the divisive concepts legislation. The letter determined that the law does not restrict local school systems from adopting AP, IB, or dual enrollment courses.
These courses will be exempted from the provisions of the legislation, provided they are implemented “in a professionally and academically appropriate manner and without espousing personal political beliefs,” according to Woods.
The superintendent’s announcement effectively streamlines the adoption process for these advanced courses in Georgia schools.
“Any such course developed by its controlling entity will be automatically adopted within the state-approved course catalog,” Woods explained. “It will not have to receive a recommendation from either the State School Superintendent of Georgia or the Georgia State Board of Education.”
This decision eliminates the need for a vote to approve or deny the adoption of these courses into the state-approved course catalog.
To address potential concerns, the Georgia Department of Education will add a disclaimer to all AP courses in the state course catalog. The disclaimer emphasizes that AP courses and their instructional frameworks are solely owned and endorsed by the College Board, and their contents have not been reviewed or approved by the Georgia Department of Education.
The disclaimer also reminds school districts to use a comprehensive review process when adopting AP courses and instructional frameworks. This process should involve students, parents, educators, and community stakeholders.
Additionally, the disclaimer notes that curricula and training should abide by state and local policies, including House Bill 1084, which requires the implementation of exempted AP courses to be professionally and academically appropriate without espousing personal political beliefs.
The superintendent’s decision comes amid debates after his intial decision to not approve AP African American Studies course in July.
Since most schools in the metro Atlanta area have started, we’ve reached out about what schools will do with offering back the class.