The Arkansas Department of Education abruptly removed course credit for an Advanced Placement African American Studies course, just months after Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a swath of bills limiting what educators can teach in public schools. =
The AP African American Studies course won’t be eligible for early college credit in the upcoming school year, according to TV news station KHBS, based in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Teachers may offer the curriculum, but the class will not be weighted the same on students’ grade point averages as other AP courses offered in the state, the Arkansas Times reported.
Kimberly Mundell, director of communications for the department, told KHBS that the class was being piloted at some Arkansas schools and is still undergoing revisions.
“Arkansas law contains provisions regarding prohibited topics,” she told KHBS, alluding to state education restrictions. “Without clarity, we cannot approve a pilot that may unintentionally put a teacher at risk of violating Arkansas law.”
The news comes amid a national shift in education systems, with several states restricting what educators can teach about race, gender and sexuality. Sanders has championed limits to education in the state. In March, she signed into law the LEARNS Act, placing restrictions on classroom lessons on gender identity and sexual orientation. The policy had been ushered in by Jacob Oliva, the state’s education secretary, in February. A few months earlier, in January, Sanders signed an executive order banning “indoctrination and critical race theory” in schools.
Alexa Henning, the communications director for the governor’s office, sent NBC News a thread of her tweets as her official statement on the matter. Henning reiterated Mundell’s comments that the class is not a history course. She added that “the pilot may not meet graduation requirements and does not comply with the rules of the department’s AP program like other vetted” courses.
“There is currently an African American History class students can receive credit for,” she continued. “The department encourages the teaching of all American history and supports rigorous courses not based on opinions or indoctrination.”
A photo shared and circulated on social media appeared to show that the course was “deleted” from the department’s Course Code Management System. Kandys Triplett, who oversees the system for the department, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News.
The College Board, a nonprofit group that oversees AP courses and administers the SATs, was piloting its AP African American Studies course at 60 schools across the country this year, including in Arkansas. Holly Stepp, a spokesperson for the board, said in a statement to NBC that the College Board has long had a good relationship with the Arkansas Department of Education. And six schools, including Little Rock’s Central High School, were scheduled to use the program this school year.
“On this first day of school, we share in their surprise, confusion, and disappointment at this new guidance that the course won’t count toward graduation credits or weighted the same as other AP courses offered in the state,” Stepp said Monday. “College Board is committed to providing an unflinching encounter with the facts of African American history and culture, and rejects the notion that the AP African American Studies course is indoctrination in any form.”
The College Board came under fire earlier this year over the inclusion of Black Lives Matter, Black queer studies and reparations in its course. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis blocked the AP African American Studies curriculum from being taught in that state, saying it was “historically inaccurate” and violated state law.
The College Board then drew criticism for appearing to back down and remove much of the content Florida complained about. The group later reiterated its commitment to AP African American studies and clarified that it had not downplayed the importance of topics like Black Lives Matter, mass incarceration and reparations in the curriculum.
“We deeply regret not immediately denouncing the Florida Department of Education’s slander, magnified by the DeSantis administration’s subsequent comments, that African American Studies ‘lacks educational value,’” the group said in a statement on its website in February.
“Our failure to raise our voice betrayed Black scholars everywhere and those who have long toiled to build this remarkable field.”
Little Rock School District, which oversees Central High School, said in a statement that district officials only learned of the change over the weekend. Superintendent Jermall Wright is speaking with state education officials to “explore options that will allow our students to fully benefit from this course despite ADE’s decision.”
“At this time, we are weighing the options provided to us with the staff at Central High School and will decide the next steps within 24-48 hours,” the statement reads. “Rest assured, we are actively working to ensure that our students continue to receive a well-rounded education that includes diverse perspectives and meaningful learning opportunities.”
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