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On Jan. 30, PAUSD Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education Dr. Guillermo Lopez moderated the second ethnic studies community meeting alongside Gunn and Paly teachers on the district鈥檚 Ethnic Studies Committee.

Although the virtual meeting was advertised as a 鈥渃ommunity input session,鈥� per Superintendent Dr. Don Austin鈥檚 Jan. 26 Superintendent鈥檚 Update, many questions in the Zoom chat 鈥� where participants were directed to ask their questions 鈥� remained unanswered.

Instead, toward the end of the meeting, which ended 15 minutes earlier than scheduled, community members could fill out a form with any remaining questions. When a similar form was sent out last December, however, parent of PAUSD alumni Lori Meyers emphasized the difficulty of giving specific feedback, as the substance of the course鈥檚 units and lesson plans wasn鈥檛 included.

鈥淭he community in general, and myself included, found it really difficult to understand exactly what we were giving feedback on, because it was something like, 鈥榃hat is your feedback on the section titled 鈥淚dentity?鈥濃�欌�� Meyers said. 鈥淲e were like, 鈥榃e don鈥檛 have any information鈥� 鈥� (the form) didn鈥檛 give us any real content to delve into.鈥�

In a follow-up conversation with 麻豆放映免费, Lopez said that responses to questions asked on the form would be posted to the in the near future, but wasn鈥檛 able to provide a firm date.

The Jan. 30 meeting was one of many instances in which community members raised questions about PAUSD鈥檚 new ethnic studies class. Passed in October 2021, California鈥檚 A.B. 101 mandates an ethnic studies-course graduation requirement for all public and charter high schools. The requirement aims to acknowledge the state鈥檚 diverse population in its curriculum, and follows in 2021 demonstrating ethnic studies鈥� positive impact on attendance and graduation rates for ninth-grade students.

In PAUSD, freshmen will first take a semesterlong ethnic studies course 鈥� which aims to 鈥渆xamine California as a microcosm of the United States and focus on themes of social justice, social responsibility, and social change by increasing student agency鈥� 鈥� before covering world history in the second semesters of ninth and 10th grade.

While ethnic studies has long been a contentious matter, tensions have risen since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7, with educators, parents and students attempting to reconcile their ideas for the content and structure and content of the course.

Path to a state mandate

On Nov. 6, 1968, the Black Student Union and Third World Liberation Front, a coalition of ethnic student organizations, (then San Francisco State College) to advocate for more diversity in the admissions process and for the creation of a school of ethnic studies. After more than four months of striking, San Francisco State established the nation鈥檚 first College of Ethnic Studies, which began operating in fall 1969.

Though it remains one of the only institutions of its kind in the U.S., ethnic studies courses have since become more common at other colleges and universities.

Five years prior to A.B. 101, former California Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law on Sept. 13, 2016, mandating the Instructional Quality Commission to develop an ethnic studies model curriculum for high schools. When the commission completed their first draft, however, it faced backlash for being ideologically left-leaning and excluding certain topics, such as antisemitism. On Aug. 12, 2019, California Board of Education President Linda Darling-Hammond announced that the Instructional Quality Commission would be submitting a new draft to the Board for approval.

鈥淓thnic studies can be an important tool to improve school climate and increase our understanding of one another,鈥� she wrote in a press release. 鈥淎 model curriculum should be accurate, free of bias, appropriate for all learners in our diverse state, and align with Governor Newsom鈥檚 vision of a California for all. The current draft model curriculum falls short and needs to be substantially redesigned.鈥�

After three additional drafts, on March 18, 2021, the California Board of Education adopted a 688-page . Although the course鈥檚 primary focus remained on African Americans, Asian Americans, Latino Americans and Native Americans 鈥� the groups most college ethnic studies courses center around 鈥� the model curriculum expanded to include lessons on other ethnic groups in the U.S. Furthermore, the final draft included guidance to teachers on establishing trust when discussing complex topics and presenting balanced coverage of issues.

Current concerns

Some on the commission, however, were dissatisfied with the final model curriculum. from the University of California Ethnic Studies Faculty Council expressed concerns over the weaponization of 鈥済uardrails,鈥� which preclude ethnic studies from promoting any discrimination, bias or bigotry.

The first draft of the state model curriculum included lesson outlines on the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel and studies of figures such as U.S. Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, whom some have criticized for anti-Israel comments. The final version does not include these lessons, instead focusing on the history and contributions of Arab American communities, as well as common stereotypes that Arab Americans encounter.

The 2023 letter contended that restricting certain material from the curriculum mirrors 鈥渃onservative efforts in states such as Texas and Florida to suppress hard truths about racism and colonialism鈥� and that 鈥淐alifornia teachers should be able to deliver lessons on important concepts such as settler colonialism, apartheid, and resistance without having to fear censorship or legal action by the state.鈥�

Those with similar views joined to create the Liberated Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum Consortium, which first convened in April 2020. The organization has their own model curriculum that aims to have students look through the 鈥渋ntersectional lenses of race, ethnicity, culture, gender, sexuality, ability, language, immigrant status, and class鈥� and 鈥渁nalyze indigeneity, white supremacy, oppression, privilege, and decolonization, and work toward empowering themselves as anti-racist leaders who engage in social justice activism.鈥�

Many, including former in favor of the state鈥檚 model, noting the dangers of using group identity as the primary lens to examine history, society, culture and politics. On the other hand, proponents of the 鈥渓iberated鈥� curriculum argue that de-emphasizing systems of power and oppression detracts from ethnic studies鈥� original purpose, leading to surface-level, non-critical explorations of culture and race.

According to Lopez, PAUSD has partnered with the University of California, Berkeley鈥檚 High School Ethnic Studies Initiative 鈥� part of its History-Social Science Project 鈥� starting this year. Some community members have expressed concerns about this partnership, as the group lists the Liberated Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum as a teaching tool and also worked with the Oakland Unified School District, in which a

In a Jan. 19 email obtained by 麻豆放映免费 through the California Public Records Act, Austin clarified to the PAUSD Board of Education that the Oakland teachers union failed to follow standard processes and taught lessons that weren鈥檛 connected to the Berkeley consultants.

鈥淒uring the (curriculum development) process we will consult with a lot of people,鈥� he wrote. 鈥淭hat should be what is expected. There will be many efforts to silence voices, starting with who we even speak with. I am asking that we continue to share the process and timelines and that our board helps people who reach out to understand that we have identified input opportunities.鈥�

In PAUSD, Gunn Social Studies Instructional Lead Jeff Patrick said that though some lesson outlines from the state鈥檚 model curriculum may be used, most would be generated by Gunn and Paly teachers. He also noted in an email that it would be 鈥渆xtremely unlikely that (the district) would use anything specific from the Liberated Ethnic Studies group.鈥�

Community feedback

In order to prepare for the 2025-26 course rollout 鈥� which was pushed back one year to allow for further course development 鈥� PAUSD formed its Ethnic Studies Committee last school year, comprising Lopez, Patrick, Paly Social Studies Instructional Lead Mary Sano, and other Gunn and Paly teachers.

The committee is currently refining the course鈥檚 five core units: Identity; Race and Ethnicity; History and Migration; Language, Culture, Education, and Learning; and Action and Civic Engagement. It is also soliciting feedback from students and community members. At the Jan. 30 meeting, the committee announced a new Unit 0: 鈥淲hy Ethnic Studies?,鈥� and Lopez noted the possibility of one section of ethnic studies running at each high school next school year to allow for additional fine-tuning before the final rollout.

Thus far, alongside the two community meetings, Paly and Gunn held information and student-feedback sessions during PRIME on Oct. 11 and Oct. 18, respectively.

At the school-board level, community members have advocated for an ethnic studies course encompassing more ethnic groups 鈥� mirroring the activism that led to the state鈥檚 sprawling model curriculum.

During Open Forum on Nov. 14, 2023, 17 Middle Eastern and North African community members spoke about their experiences with Islamophobia and advocated for MENA inclusion in ethnic studies. According to Paly senior Mariam Tayebi, who is the MENA Club co-president, the group felt compelled to speak after facing bullying and discrimination following the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

鈥淲e decided that it鈥檚 really important for us to show the district and show whoever else watches (the Board meetings) that there are kids here and we are struggling and we want to be represented,鈥� she said.

At the next meeting, on Dec. 12, eight Jewish parents and students 鈥� including PAUSD parent Linor Levav 鈥� detailed personal experiences of antisemitism and asked for Jewish voices to be included in the ethnic studies curriculum. Although Jewish Americans鈥� history is typically not covered in most college-level ethnic studies courses 鈥� they are considered white in the context of the discipline 鈥� the California model curriculum includes lessons on Jewish Americans and antisemitism.

鈥淚 want to ask you to please include Jewish Americans in our ethnic studies class,鈥� Levav said during Open Forum. 鈥淎ntisemitism has exploded across the United States and the Bay Area. It鈥檚 fueled by lies about Jews and Israel. PAUSD can and should help to correct this.鈥�

Beyond specific ethnic-group considerations, many have advocated for transparency with the curriculum-development process.

鈥淚t鈥檚 very, very important that there is … full transparency,鈥� Meyers said. 鈥淭he more that the community and students and parents can see what鈥檚 going on in ethnic studies, the better and smoother the process is going to be, and the more likely it鈥檚 going to be that we get the kind of ethnic studies class that I think we all really want.鈥�

While Patrick understands the community鈥檚 desire to participate and the need for PAUSD to share updates and solicit feedback, he emphasized that the lack of transparency some feel can mostly be attributed to educators鈥� newness to the process, not ulterior motives.

鈥淲hat we鈥檙e trying to do is create a course that鈥檚 going to be best for our students,鈥� he said. 鈥淪o as people are looking at our work and bringing up their own points, I hope that they can keep that in mind that some of the comments parents make might not be in the best interests of our students as a whole.鈥�

Along a similar vein, though PAUSD parent Uzma Minhas also values transparency and community involvement, she cautions the district from only listening to the loudest and most organized groups.

鈥淭hey have to be very careful that oftentimes marginalized communities don鈥檛 speak up, so they may not be hearing from the most marginalized communities,鈥� she said.

A realistic curriculum

Although much of the conversation surrounding ethnic studies has revolved around Jewish and MENA curricular inclusion, Patrick emphasized that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would not explicitly be covered in the new course, and that it鈥檚 currently a part of the sophomore Contemporary World History class.

鈥淭he scope that the state intends for the ethnic studies curriculum is narrower than the general public … is aware of,鈥� he said. 鈥淏y the time students are there in 10th grade looking at that topic, they will have hopefully developed the skills or began to develop the skills to analyze those things on their own.鈥�

Paly senior Alma Samet 鈥� who identifies as a Mizrahi Jew (Jewish people who are of MENA origin) 鈥� agrees with this assessment, noting how including the conflict in ethnic studies could exacerbate misrepresentation.

鈥淚 really could see it just overriding and taking up a lot more space in the curriculum than it has to, especially when there are so many different topics and communities to focus on,鈥� she said.

Still, senior Deena Abu-Dayeh stressed the imperfections of how the Middle East is currently covered in Contemporary World History, citing her own experiences.

鈥淭he only time I鈥檝e ever heard (about) Palestine 鈥� which is where I鈥檓 from 鈥� is when it had to do with the conflict and how we are the terrorists, and that name has been portrayed on us a lot,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat kind of gives a false image that all of us are just barbarians that have to deal with poverty.鈥�

According to Patrick, the ethnic studies course鈥檚 final unit 鈥� Action and Civil Engagement 鈥� will include a capstone activity allowing students to have more choice in the topics that they delve into.

Looking ahead, the social studies department plans to identify potential ethnic studies teachers by this spring, so that it can spend the next school year in professional development related to the course. Although specific trainings have yet to be finalized, teachers will be focusing on developing common understandings of sociological terms that may not be as prevalent in other history classes, such as 鈥渄ominant and counter narratives鈥� and 鈥渋ntersectionality.鈥�

Ultimately, despite the complex and often-controversial process, Samet maintains an emphasis on the course鈥檚 central objective.

鈥淚 think the main goals are just to create more well-rounded, respectful students who are ready to go into a world that is very diverse,鈥� she said. 鈥淓specially in America, it鈥檚 a big old melting pot, so making sure that people maintain respect for all types of cultures and traditions and also understand a bit more of a backstory on the struggles that these communities have faced.鈥�

The next ethnic studies community meeting will be conducted as a webinar, and the district will ask for questions in advance. More information will be provided in Dr. Austin鈥檚 weekly Superintendent Updates.