In a reversal, Georgia now says districts can use state funding to teach AP Black studies classes

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia state Superintendent Richard Woods said Wednesday that the state will pay for districts to teach a new Advanced Placement course in African American Studies, a day after he said districts could only teach the course using local funds.

In the face of blossoming outrage, the Georgia Department of Education now says districts are free to teach the course and the state will pay for it as long as districts use a code linked to an existing state-approved course in African American studies.

“Districts can choose to use that course code and teach some or all of the standards in the AP course, and students may take the associated AP exam,” Meghan Frick, a spokesperson for the state department, wrote in response to Associated Press questions.

That reversal did little to stem the pushback to Woods’ earlier refusal. In a rally at the Georgia Capitol on Wednesday, 15 mostly Democratic speakers attacked the elected Republican, saying he was trying to keep students from learning about Georgia’s history.

“We are gathered here today in solidarity, standing firm with our students and teachers who have been blindsided by an abrupt and unjust decision to remove AP African American Studies reports from our state curriculum,” said state Sen. Nikki Merritt, a Democrat from suburban Lawrenceville. “This decision strips away a vital opportunity for our students to engage with and understand a significant part of our shared history.”

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Woods also faced pointed questions from Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, who sent a letter asking why and how Woods arrived at his original decision to block state funding. In that letter, Kemp described himself as “a longtime believer that families should ultimately make the decisions which best meet their child’s academic needs and futures”

“As you know, the wellbeing of Georgia’s children and their education opportunities is one of my top priorities,” wrote Kemp, who is currently on an economic recruiting trip in Italy.

Woods hasn’t explained his refusal in any depth, saying only in a Wednesday statement that “I had concerns about the state endorsing the totality of the course.”

Stan DeJarnett, chair of the State Board of Education, said in a statement that “No one is preventing any school system in Georgia from offering this course if they choose to do so,” echoing the department’s current position that districts can use state money even if the state isn’t listing the course in its catalog.

All other Advanced Placement courses are listed in the state course catalog, Frick said.

Supporters of the course Wednesday rejected the state’s new position, saying Georgia’s original refusal to recognize the course was discriminatory.

“To suggest that course is somehow less than is not OK,” said state Rep. Jasmine Clark, a Democrat from suburban Lilburn.

The College Board, a nonprofit testing entity, offers Advanced Placement courses across the academic spectrum, including in math, science, social studies, foreign languages and fine arts. The courses are optional and taught at a college level. Students who score well on a final exam can usually earn college credit.

Sara Sympson, a spokesperson for the College Board, said 33 Georgia schools piloted the African American Studies course in the 2023-2024 academic year. Many schools assumed they would be offering the finalized version of the course this year.

But the Advanced Placement course drew national scrutiny in 2023 when Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, preparing for his presidential run, said he would ban the course in his state because it pushed a political agenda. In June, South Carolina officials also refused to add the course to its list of approved courses. South Carolina said individual districts could still choose to offer the course.

In Arkansas, state officials have said the course will count for credit in the coming school year. They denied such credit last year, but six schools taught the pilot course anyway.

Some individual school districts around the country have also declined to offer the course.

In 2022, Georgia lawmakers passed a ban on teaching divisive racial concepts in schools, prohibiting claims that the U.S. is “fundamentally or systematically racist,” and mandating that no student “should feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress because of his or her race.”

So far, 18 states have passed such bans. It is unclear if Georgia’s law influenced Woods’ decision.

Some districts vowed to teach the classes even if the state didn’t pay for it. The Atlanta district made that pledge Tuesday. The larger DeKalb County school district, which had told students and teachers that it had canceled the classes, said Wednesday that it would teach the course at four of its high schools. Michael Thurmond, CEO of DeKalb County’s government, pledged up to $100,000 to help cover the costs.

Gwinnett County spokesperson Bernard Watson said the situation was “evolving.” While that district, the state’s largest, didn’t reverse its decision to cancel the classes at six high schools, Watson said Gwinnett County is working with state officials “to explore its options for this course.”